IDA & IBRD total: Electric power transmission and distribution losses (% of output)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2023, IDA & IBRD total's electric power transmission and distribution losses (% of output) fell 0.06 percentage points on 2022 (from 7.83% to 7.77%).

Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1993 to 2022), the average change was −0.1 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.32 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 1.28 percentage points in 1971 and the biggest yearly fall was 1.46 percentage points in 1990. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2014 to 2023 the straight-line trend is downward, about 0.26 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 98% 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.

A straight-line projection, tested first

Extending that straight line gives about 7.02% for 2026. We show this only because the same method, fitted on earlier years, predicted 2021 to 2023 better than "no change" would have: its average miss was 0.31%, against 0.8% for assuming no change. Treat it as a continuation of the recent pattern, not a forecast of events: it cannot see a recession, a policy change or a revision to the data.

See how a linear trend forecast works and the guide on forecasting without fooling yourself.

How it compares

See how every economy compares in the full ranking.

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 64 values

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

• Algeria — 8.87% (2024)
• Bahrain — 2.83% (2024)
• Egypt, Arab Rep. — 19.87% (2024)
• Iran, Islamic Rep. — 10.09% (2024)
• Iraq — 58.7% (2024)
• Israel — 5.64% (2025)
• Jordan — 10.96% (2024)
• Kuwait — 9.04% (2024)
• Lebanon

More environment data for IDA & IBRD total

• Population in the largest city (% of urban population) — 15.35% (2025)
• Population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million (% of total population) — 22.84% (2025)
• Rural population — 3.24 billion (2025)
• Rural population (% of total population) — 46.32% (2025)
• Urban population — 3.75 billion (2025)
• Urban population (% of total population) — 53.68% (2025)
• Fossil fuel energy consumption (% of total) — 80.92% (2024)
• Aquaculture production (metric tons) — 133.24 million (2024)
• Capture fisheries production (metric tons)

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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• Real change or random noise? A plain guide to reading your numbers — 2 min read

Questions people ask

What is IDA & IBRD total's electric power transmission and distribution losses (% of output)?

7.77% in 2023, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1960?

It is down 1.82 percentage points from 9.59% in 1960. The highest value was 13.77% in 2001 and the lowest 7.77% in 2023.

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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