Middle East on Edge: Houthis Strike Energy Target as Trump Threatens, Delays Iran War Escalation
Iran and its Houthi allies in Yemen attacked Persian Gulf energy interests, injecting volatility into global crude and overseas LNG prices this week.
Yemen
Yemen is a low income economy in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, with its capital at Sana'a. 86.3% of its people had electricity in 2024.
- Electricity access
- 86.3%
- 2024, world 91.9%
- Renewable electricity
- 10.3%
- 2021, world 27.8%
- CO₂ per person
- 0.26 t
- 2024, world 4.69 t
- Consumption per person
- 99 kWh
- 2024, world 3,708 kWh
- Clean cooking
- 47.0%
- 2024, world 75.4%
- GDP per person
- 634
- 2018, world 14,406
Electricity generation mix
- Oil
- Coal
- Gas
- Hydro
- Nuclear
- Solar, wind & other
Yemen2024
Middle East & North Africa2025
World2025
View data table
| Economy | Oil | Coal | Gas | Hydro | Nuclear | Solar, wind & other | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yemen | 84.2% | 0.0% | 1.7% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 10.3% | 2024 |
| Middle East & North Africa | 0.6% | 9.3% | 74.8% | 3.3% | 3.3% | 2.9% | 2025 |
| World | 1.2% | 15.1% | 28.7% | 15.2% | 15.2% | 12.4% | 2025 |
Share of electricity production by source, latest year available. Shares may not sum to exactly 100% because of rounding and minor sources.
Access to electricity
% of population, compared with Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan and the world.
- Yemen
- World
- Middle East & North Africa
0%
50%
100%
Middle East & North AfricaWorldYemen View data table
| Year | Yemen | World | Middle East & North Africa |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 86.3% | 91.9% | 96.8% |
| 2023 | 83.6% | 91.6% | 96.4% |
| 2022 | 76.0% | 91.3% | 95.9% |
| 2021 | 74.9% | 91.3% | 96.4% |
| 2020 | 73.9% | 90.4% | 96.3% |
| 2019 | 72.8% | 90.1% | 96.0% |
| 2018 | 62.0% | 89.8% | 95.0% |
| 2017 | 79.2% | 88.9% | 96.0% |
| 2016 | 68.9% | 88.1% | 95.2% |
| 2015 | 67.4% | 86.9% | 93.4% |
| 2014 | 66.1% | 86.2% | 94.0% |
| 2013 | 75.6% | 85.7% | 93.1% |
| 2012 | 52.4% | 84.9% | 91.9% |
| 2011 | 62.0% | 84.5% | 90.8% |
| 2010 | 60.8% | 83.5% | 90.6% |
| 2009 | 59.6% | 82.9% | 88.7% |
| 2008 | 58.4% | 82.7% | 88.1% |
| 2007 | 57.2% | 82.0% | 87.2% |
| 2006 | 55.8% | 81.4% | 87.7% |
| 2005 | 54.8% | 80.7% | 86.0% |
| 2004 | 49.6% | 80.0% | 85.0% |
| 2003 | 52.6% | 80.0% | 84.6% |
| 2002 | 51.5% | 79.1% | 83.6% |
| 2001 | 50.4% | 78.7% | 83.3% |
| 2000 | 49.2% | 78.2% | 82.6% |
| 1999 | 48.0% | 74.5% | – |
| 1998 | 46.8% | 73.2% | – |
| 1997 | 42.6% | – | – |
| 1996 | 44.4% | – | – |
| 1995 | 43.2% | – | – |
Emissions
CO₂ per person, tonnes, excluding land use.
- Yemen
- World
- Middle East & North Africa
0 t
2 t
4 t
6 t
WorldMiddle East & North AfricaYemen View data table
| Year | Yemen | World | Middle East & North Africa |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 0.26 t | 4.69 t | 4.09 t |
| 2023 | 0.27 t | 4.68 t | 4.09 t |
| 2022 | 0.29 t | 4.67 t | 4.09 t |
| 2021 | 0.30 t | 4.68 t | 4.08 t |
| 2020 | 0.31 t | 4.47 t | 3.94 t |
| 2019 | 0.35 t | 4.70 t | 4.03 t |
| 2018 | 0.35 t | 4.73 t | 4.00 t |
| 2017 | 0.30 t | 4.67 t | 4.11 t |
| 2016 | 0.33 t | 4.65 t | 4.07 t |
| 2015 | 0.46 t | 4.70 t | 4.07 t |
| 2014 | 0.94 t | 4.78 t | 4.09 t |
| 2013 | 0.98 t | 4.81 t | 4.02 t |
| 2012 | 0.77 t | 4.77 t | 4.03 t |
| 2011 | 0.83 t | 4.76 t | 3.92 t |
| 2010 | 0.98 t | 4.67 t | 3.91 t |
| 2009 | 1.07 t | 4.45 t | 3.84 t |
| 2008 | 1.01 t | 4.56 t | 3.80 t |
| 2007 | 1.00 t | 4.59 t | 3.69 t |
| 2006 | 0.97 t | 4.48 t | 3.60 t |
| 2005 | 0.97 t | 4.39 t | 3.48 t |
| 2004 | 0.93 t | 4.28 t | 3.35 t |
| 2003 | 0.91 t | 4.15 t | 3.23 t |
| 2002 | 0.81 t | 4.02 t | 3.19 t |
| 2001 | 0.83 t | 4.01 t | 3.16 t |
| 2000 | 0.80 t | 4.01 t | 3.08 t |
| 1999 | 0.77 t | 3.95 t | 3.03 t |
| 1998 | 0.71 t | 3.98 t | 2.98 t |
| 1997 | 0.69 t | 4.02 t | 3.03 t |
| 1996 | 0.66 t | 4.01 t | 2.97 t |
| 1995 | 0.67 t | 3.99 t | 2.95 t |
Currency
236.16 YER
per US dollar, mid-market reference. 1 YER = ₦5.638
Sunshine in Sana'a
6.8 kWh/m² today
- Tu6.8 kWh per square metre
- We6.6 kWh per square metre
- Th7.0 kWh per square metre
- Fr6.7 kWh per square metre
- Sa7.1 kWh per square metre
- Su7.2 kWh per square metre
- Mo7.2 kWh per square metre
Open-Meteo forecast, modelled irradiation.
Power plants
Installed capacity by fuel
7 plants, 1,045 MW recorded in WRI’s Global Power Plant Database.
- Oil645 MW
- Gas400 MW
Snapshot as of the database’s 2021 release; newer plants are not included. Nameplate capacity, not available generation.
Largest plants
| Plant | Fuel | MW | Since |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marib | Gas | 400 | 2009 |
| Al Mukha | Oil | 160 | 1985 |
| Ras Kanatib | Oil | 150 | 1981 |
| Al Mansoura | Oil | 139 | – |
| Al Hiswa | Oil | 125 | 1986 |
| Dhaban | Oil | 41 | 1980 |
| Khormaksar | Oil | 30 | 1974 |
All indicators
Yemen in numbers
Energy access
| Indicator | Yemen | Year | Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan | World |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Access to electricity % of population | 86.3% | 2024 | 96.8% | 91.9% |
| Access to electricity, rural % of rural population | 81.3% | 2024 | 94.0% | 84.9% |
| Access to electricity, urban % of urban population | 95.0% | 2024 | 99.4% | 97.8% |
| Access to clean fuels and technologies for cooking % of population | 47.0% | 2024 | 77.8% | 75.4% |
Power supply and mix
| Indicator | Yemen | Year | Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan | World |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Electricity production from coal % of total | 0.0% | 2021 | 9.3% | 15.1% |
| Electricity production from natural gas % of total | 1.7% | 2024 | 74.8% | 28.7% |
| Electricity production from oil % of total | 84.2% | 2024 | 0.6% | 1.2% |
| Electricity production from nuclear % of total | 0.0% | 2021 | 3.3% | 15.2% |
| Electricity production from hydroelectric sources % of total | 0.0% | 2021 | 3.3% | 15.2% |
| Electric power transmission and distribution losses % of output | 27.6% | 2024 | 14.4% | 6.9% |
| Electric power consumption per capita kWh per capita | 99 kWh | 2024 | 2,428 kWh | 3,708 kWh |
Energy transition
| Indicator | Yemen | Year | Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan | World |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Electricity production from renewables, excluding hydro % of total | 10.3% | 2021 | 2.9% | 12.4% |
| Renewable electricity output % of total electricity output | 10.3% | 2021 | 6.3% | 27.8% |
| Renewable energy consumption % of total final energy consumption | 3.7% | 2021 | 7.5% | 19.7% |
| CO₂ emissions per capita (excluding LULUCF) t CO₂e per capita | 0.26 t | 2024 | 4.09 t | 4.69 t |
| CO₂ emissions, total (excluding LULUCF) Mt CO₂e | 10.6 Mt | 2024 | 3,306.2 Mt | 39,632.7 Mt |
| Energy intensity of primary energy MJ per $2017 PPP GDP | 2.07 MJ/$ | 2021 | 5.33 MJ/$ | 4.54 MJ/$ |
Energy economy
| Indicator | Yemen | Year | Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan | World |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fuel exports % of merchandise exports | 0.0% | 2024 | 68.5% | 9.5% |
| Oil rents % of GDP | 4.82% | 2018 | 13.97% | 1.36% |
| Natural gas rents % of GDP | 0.00% | 2016 | 2.95% | 0.52% |
| GDP per capita current US$ | 634 | 2018 | 6,202 | 14,406 |
| Population, total people | 41.8M | 2025 | 828M | 8.2B |
Source: World Bank, World Development Indicators (CC BY 4.0). Latest year available per series.
Yemen in the newsroom