Iceland: Electric power transmission and distribution losses (% of output)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2025, Iceland's electric power transmission and distribution losses (% of output) fell 1.97 percentage points on 2024 (from 2.92% to 0.95%).

Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1995 to 2024), the average change was −0.07 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.86 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 2.2 standard deviations below that average, so it was unusually large compared with the rest of the record.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 2.3 percentage points in 1996 and the biggest yearly fall was 1.97 percentage points in 2025. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2016 to 2025 there is no clear straight-line trend: a straight line explains 22% of the movement over 10 observed years, so the value is moving around more than it is heading anywhere.

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

How it compares

In 2025, Iceland had the 41st highest value of the 40 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 Iceland in the 2025 ranking

• Finland — 37th of 40: 3.81%
• Netherlands — 38th of 40: 3.48%
• Korea, Rep. — 39th of 40: 2.99%

What this measures

Electric power transmission and distribution losses include losses in transmission between sources of supply and points of distribution and in the distribution to consumers, including pilferage. The losses are expressed as a share of the total output.

Limitations: Electricity consumption is equivalent to production less power plants' own use and transmission, distribution, and transformation losses less exports plus imports. It includes consumption by auxiliary stations, losses in transformers that are considered integral parts of those stations, and electricity produced by pumping installations. Where data are available, it covers electricity generated by primary sources of energy - coal, oil, gas, nuclear, hydro, geothermal, wind, tide and wave, and combustible renewables. Neither production nor consumption data capture the reliability of supplies, including breakdowns, load factors, and frequency of outages.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a weighted average using total electricity production as weights.

All 36 values

Electric power transmission and distribution losses (% of output) in nearby economies

• Albania — 18.05% (2024)
• Armenia — 5.09% (2024)
• Austria — 4.26% (2025)
• Azerbaijan — 7.93% (2024)
• Belarus — 6.57% (2024)
• Belgium — 4.52% (2025)
• Bosnia and Herzegovina — 7.93% (2024)
• Bulgaria — 6% (2024)
• Croatia

More environment data for Iceland

• Rural population — 22,689 (2025)
• Rural population (% of total population) — 5.78% (2025)
• Urban population — 369,715 (2025)
• Urban population (% of total population) — 94.22% (2025)
• Aquaculture production (metric tons) — 54,789 (2024)
• Capture fisheries production (metric tons) — 1.01 million (2024)
• Total fisheries production (metric tons) — 1.06 million (2024)
• Rural population growth (annual %) — 0.89% (2025)
• Urban population growth (annual %) — 1.55% (2025)
• Fertilizer consumption (kilograms per hectare of arable land) — 133.69 (2024)

Reading data like this

• Where to find free public data, and how to check it before you trust it — 2 min read
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Questions people ask

What is Iceland's electric power transmission and distribution losses (% of output)?

0.95% in 2025, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1990?

It is down 7.81 percentage points from 8.76% in 1990. The highest value was 8.88% in 1996 and the lowest 0.95% in 2025.

How does Iceland rank?

41st highest of 40 economies with data for 2025.

Is the latest change in electric power transmission and distribution losses (% of output) unusual for Iceland?

In 2025, Iceland's electric power transmission and distribution losses (% of output) fell 1.97 percentage points on 2024 (from 2.92% to 0.95%). Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1995 to 2024), the average change was −0.07 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.86 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 2.2 standard deviations below that average, so it was unusually large compared with the rest of the record.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator EG.ELC.LOSS.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: IEA Energy Statistics Data Browser, International Energy Agency (IEA), uri: https://www.iea.org/data-and-statistics/data-tools/energy-statistics-data-browser, publisher: International Energy Agency (IEA), date accessed: 2025-03-25 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.

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