Excluding hydropower changes the renewable-electricity picture substantially. World Bank series EG.ELC.RNWX.ZS measures the share of total electricity production generated from non-hydro renewable sources such as wind, solar, geothermal, tidal energy, biomass and biofuels. The 2021 file contains 208 country and area observations, but 13 are negative. Because a negative generation share is not physically interpretable as a normal percentage, the cross-country distribution below uses the 195 observations at or above zero. Their median is 6.58%, the simple mean is 11.33%, and Korea is 5.51%.
Table of Contents
The indicator isolates renewables other than hydropower
The World Bank title is Electricity production from renewable sources, excluding hydroelectric (% of total), code EG.ELC.RNWX.ZS. The denominator is total electricity production. The numerator includes geothermal, solar, tides, wind, biomass and biofuels while excluding hydropower. The World Bank identifies the IEA Energy Statistics Data Browser as the underlying source.
This makes the measure different from total renewable electricity output. A hydro-dominated system can have a very high overall renewable share but a low value here. The series also differs from installed renewable capacity and from renewable energy’s share of total final energy consumption. It answers a narrower question: how much of the electricity mix came from non-hydro renewables?
The median of the 195 non-negative observations is 6.58%
Giving each of the 195 non-negative observations equal weight, the median is 6.58% and the mean is 11.33%. The first quartile is 1.95% and the third quartile is 16.10%, placing the middle half between roughly 2.0% and 16.1%. The mean sits above the median because a small upper group reaches very high non-hydro renewable shares.
| 2021 non-hydro renewable share | Countries/areas | Share of 195 |
|---|---|---|
| 0 to <1% | 39 | 20.0% |
| 1 to <5% | 46 | 23.6% |
| 5 to <10% | 38 | 19.5% |
| 10 to <20% | 37 | 19.0% |
| 20 to <40% | 28 | 14.4% |
| 40% or more | 7 | 3.6% |
39 observations are below 1% and another 46 fall between 1% and 5%. Only 35 are at or above 20%, and 7 are at or above 40%. The 11.33% simple mean is not the global share of electricity generated from non-hydro renewables, because countries are not weighted by their electricity output.
Denmark leads at 78.91%, with high shares spread across several regions
Denmark records the highest non-negative 2021 observation at 78.91%. El Salvador follows at 66.86%, Belize at 59.46%, Nicaragua at 55.29%, and Uruguay at 51.39%. Kenya reaches 48.39%, Lithuania 44.09%, Luxembourg 40.00%, Estonia 39.64%, and Portugal 38.51%. The upper group spans Europe, Central and South America, and Africa rather than forming a single continental cluster.
| Country | Non-hydro renewable share |
|---|---|
| Denmark | 78.91% |
| El Salvador | 66.86% |
| Belize | 59.46% |
| Nicaragua | 55.29% |
| Uruguay | 51.39% |
| Kenya | 48.39% |
| Lithuania | 44.09% |
| Luxembourg | 40.00% |
| Estonia | 39.64% |
| Portugal | 38.51% |
Korea is 5.51%, ranking 106th among 195 non-negative observations
Korea records 5.51% in 2021 and ranks 106th when the 195 non-negative observations are sorted from highest to lowest. The United Kingdom is 37.83%, Germany 35.62%, Spain 35.04%, Brazil 22.08%, and Australia 20.94%. The United States is 14.01%, China 12.86%, Japan 12.64%, France 11.30%, India 9.20%, and Canada 7.92%.
| Selected economy | 2021 share |
|---|---|
| United Kingdom | 37.83% |
| Germany | 35.62% |
| Spain | 35.04% |
| Brazil | 22.08% |
| Australia | 20.94% |
| United States | 14.01% |
| China | 12.86% |
| Japan | 12.64% |
| France | 11.30% |
| India | 9.20% |
| Canada | 7.92% |
| Korea, Rep. | 5.51% |
These percentages describe electricity-mix composition, not generation volume. A small system with a 50% share can generate fewer non-hydro renewable terawatt-hours than a large system with a 15% share. Absolute generation requires a kWh, GWh or TWh series.
Thirteen negative source observations should not be read as negative renewable generation
The 2021 data include 13 values below zero, including Equatorial Guinea at -23.77%, Gabon at -17.19%, Nepal at -15.12%, Lao PDR at -10.00%, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo at -9.18%. The indicator’s official unit is a percentage share of total electricity production, so those values are not physically meaningful as ordinary renewable-generation shares. They are better treated as a data-quality signal that may reflect inconsistencies in source calculations, revisions, or component series.
For that reason, the map shading, distribution statistics and ranking use only values at or above zero. The negative observations are not silently changed to zero. Preserving the anomaly while excluding it from a normal percentage ranking avoids turning a questionable source value into a misleading statement about a country’s power system.
Hydropower must be added back before describing a country’s total renewable electricity mix
This series intentionally removes hydropower. It is therefore best used to compare the role of wind, solar, geothermal, biomass and other non-hydro renewables. Reading it alongside the 2021 hydropower, fossil-fuel, natural-gas and nuclear shares gives a more complete picture of national electricity mixes.
Data source and comparison method
The source is the World Bank World Development Indicators EG.ELC.RNWX.ZS metadata and country observations. The World Bank identifies the IEA Energy Statistics Data Browser as the underlying source. Of 208 observations dated 2021, 13 negative values are separated as data-quality anomalies and the cross-country statistics use the remaining 195 non-negative observations with equal country weights. Gibraltar’s 2015 value is not mixed into the 2021 comparison.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which energy sources are included in the non-hydro renewable electricity indicator?
World Bank EG.ELC.RNWX.ZS includes geothermal, solar, tides, wind, biomass and biofuels, while hydropower is excluded.
What was Korea’s non-hydro renewable electricity share in 2021?
Korea records 5.51% and ranks 106th among the 195 non-negative 2021 observations.
Why are 13 negative values excluded from the normal ranking?
The official unit is a percentage share of total electricity production, so a negative value is not physically interpretable as an ordinary generation share. The source values are preserved as anomalies rather than changed to zero, while the normal comparison uses non-negative observations.
Does a low value mean a country has little renewable electricity overall?
Not necessarily. Hydropower is excluded from this indicator, so a hydro-heavy power system can have a low non-hydro renewable share while still producing a large share of electricity from renewables overall.
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