Iceland: Renewable electricity output (% of total electricity output)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2016, Iceland's renewable electricity output (% of total electricity output) rose 0.01 percentage points on 2015 (from 99.99% to 99.99%).

Across the 25 yearly changes before that (1991 to 2015), the average change was +0 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.03 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.1 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 0.08 percentage points in 1996 and the biggest yearly fall was 0.08 percentage points in 1995. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2007 to 2016 there is no clear straight-line trend: a straight line explains less than 1% 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

See how every economy compares in the full ranking.

What this measures

Renewable electricity is the share of electricity generated by renewable power plants in total electricity generated by all types of plants.

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

All 27 values

Renewable electricity output (% of total electricity output) in nearby economies

• Andorra — 93.34% (2021)
• Armenia — 30.04% (2021)
• Austria — 79.91% (2021)
• Azerbaijan — 5.8% (2021)
• Belarus — 3.15% (2021)
• Belgium — 23.54% (2021)
• Bosnia and Herzegovina — 39.34% (2021)
• Bulgaria — 22.19% (2021)
• Croatia — 69.88% (2021)

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

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Questions people ask

What is Iceland's renewable electricity output (% of total electricity output)?

99.99% in 2016, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1990?

It is up 0.13 percentage points from 99.87% in 1990. The highest value was 99.99% in 2016 and the lowest 99.82% in 1995.

Is the latest change in renewable electricity output (% of total electricity output) unusual for Iceland?

In 2016, Iceland's renewable electricity output (% of total electricity output) rose 0.01 percentage points on 2015 (from 99.99% to 99.99%). Across the 25 yearly changes before that (1991 to 2015), the average change was +0 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.03 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.1 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator EG.ELC.RNEW.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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