IDA total - Electric power transmission and distribution losses (% of output)

Electric power transmission and distribution losses (% of output) in IDA total was 16.37 as of 2014. Its highest value over the past 43 years was 21.43 in 1998, while its lowest value was 12.10 in 1974.

Definition: 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.

Source: IEA Statistics © OECD/IEA 2018 (http://www.iea.org/stats/index.asp), subject to https://www.iea.org/t&c/termsandconditions/

See also:

Year Value
1971 14.75
1972 13.89
1973 13.21
1974 12.10
1975 13.06
1976 14.01
1977 13.69
1978 14.09
1979 16.32
1980 17.93
1981 19.58
1982 16.59
1983 17.71
1984 19.84
1985 17.72
1986 16.59
1987 17.70
1988 19.10
1989 18.03
1990 15.33
1991 15.88
1992 17.01
1993 16.49
1994 17.78
1995 18.33
1996 19.21
1997 19.91
1998 21.43
1999 20.32
2000 20.24
2001 20.99
2002 20.92
2003 19.81
2004 19.43
2005 18.88
2006 18.48
2007 16.70
2008 17.83
2009 17.37
2010 15.57
2011 15.73
2012 15.66
2013 15.92
2014 16.37

Development Relevance: An economy's production and consumption of electricity are basic indicators of its size and level of development. Although a few countries export electric power, most production is for domestic consumption. Expanding the supply of electricity to meet the growing demand of increasingly urbanized and industrialized economies without incurring unacceptable social, economic, and environmental costs is one of the great challenges facing developing countries. Modern societies are becoming increasing dependent on reliable and secure electricity supplies to underpin economic growth and community prosperity. This reliance is set to grow as more efficient and less carbon intensive forms of power are developed and deployed to help decarbonize economies. Maintaining reliable and secure electricity services while seeking to rapidly decarbonize power systems is a key challenge for countries throughout the world. In developing economies growth in energy use is closely related to growth in the modern sectors - industry, motorized transport, and urban areas - but energy use also reflects climatic, geographic, and economic factors (such as the relative price of energy). Energy use has been growing rapidly in low- and middle-income economies, but high-income economies still use almost five times as much energy on a per capita basis. Governments in many countries are increasingly aware of the urgent need to make better use of the world's energy resources. Improved energy efficiency is often the most economic and readily available means of improving energy security and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

Limitations and Exceptions: 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.

Statistical Concept and Methodology: Data on electric power production and consumption are collected from national energy agencies by the International Energy Agency (IEA) and adjusted by the IEA to meet international definitions. Electric power transmission and distribution losses percentage of output is the share of electric power transmission and distribution losses to electricity production which is the total number of GWh generated by power plants separated into electricity plants and CHP plants.

Aggregation method: Weighted average

Periodicity: Annual

General Comments: Restricted use: Please contact the International Energy Agency for third-party use of these data.

Classification

Topic: Environment Indicators

Sub-Topic: Energy production & use