Equatorial Guinea: Natural gas rents (% of GDP)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2021, Equatorial Guinea's natural gas rents (% of GDP) rose 2.92 percentage points on 2020 (from 3.71% to 6.63%).

Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1986 to 2020), the average change was +0.12 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.46 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 6.1 standard deviations above that average, so it was unusually large compared with the rest of the record.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 2.92 percentage points in 2021 and the biggest yearly fall was 0.96 percentage points in 2020. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2012 to 2021 the straight-line trend is upward, about 0.22 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 41% of the movement over 10 observed years.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

How it compares

In 2021, Equatorial Guinea had the 9th highest value of the 188 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.

Closest to Equatorial Guinea in the 2021 ranking

• Iran, Islamic Rep. — 5th of 188: 8.81%
• Azerbaijan — 6th of 188: 8.59%
• Algeria — 7th of 188: 8%
• Russian Federation — 9th of 188: 5.86%
• Bahrain — 10th of 188: 5.7%
• Oman — 11th of 188: 5.67%

What this measures

Natural gas rents are the difference between the value of natural gas production at regional prices and total costs of production.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a weighted average.

All 38 values

Natural gas rents (% of GDP) in nearby economies

• Angola — 1.01% (2021)
• Benin — 0% (2021)
• Botswana — 0% (2021)
• Burkina Faso — 0% (2021)
• Burundi — 0% (2021)
• Cabo Verde — 0% (2021)
• Cameroon — 0.58% (2021)
• Central African Republic — 0% (2021)
• Chad — 0.01% (2021)
• Comoros — 0% (2021)
• Congo, Dem. Rep. — 0% (2021)

More environment data for Equatorial Guinea

• Population in largest city — 512,750 (2025)
• Population in the largest city (% of urban population) — 36.96% (2025)
• Rural population — 550,978 (2025)
• Rural population (% of total population) — 28.42% (2025)
• Urban population — 1.39 million (2025)
• Urban population (% of total population) — 71.58% (2025)
• Aquaculture production (metric tons) — 21 (2024)
• Capture fisheries production (metric tons) — 7,253 (2024)
• Total fisheries production (metric tons) — 7,274 (2024)
• Rural population growth (annual %)

Reading data like this

• Where to find free public data, and how to check it before you trust it — 2 min read
• Data analysis examples: 6 worked from one dataset — 3 min read
• Real change or random noise? A plain guide to reading your numbers — 2 min read

Questions people ask

What is Equatorial Guinea's natural gas rents (% of GDP)?

6.63% in 2021, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1980?

It is up 6.63 percentage points from 0% in 1980. The highest value was 6.63% in 2021 and the lowest 0% in 1980.

How does Equatorial Guinea rank?

9th highest of 188 economies with data for 2021.

Is the latest change in natural gas rents (% of GDP) unusual for Equatorial Guinea?

In 2021, Equatorial Guinea's natural gas rents (% of GDP) rose 2.92 percentage points on 2020 (from 3.71% to 6.63%). Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1986 to 2020), the average change was +0.12 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.46 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 6.1 standard deviations above that average, so it was unusually large compared with the rest of the record.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator NY.GDP.NGAS.RT.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: The Changing Wealth of Nations, World Bank (WB), uri: https://www.worldbank.org/en/publication/changing-wealth-of-nations/data, note: World Bank staff estimates based on sources and methods described in the World Bank's The Changing Wealth of Nations., publisher: World Bank (WB); Staff estimates, Wo… Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

Want to ask your own questions of data like this? Try AnalyzeIt: upload a file or ask about public data in plain words, and every figure comes with its working.