Desalination System Market - Forecast(2023 - 2028)

Desalination system market size is forecast to reach $28 billion by 2025, after growing at a CAGR of 8.1% during 2020-2025. With the increasing population, the demand for freshwater consumption is also increasing at an explicit rate. The availability of freshwater is very low and due to increasing consumption it is declining at a faster rate due to which the need for an alternative technology for fresh water is also increasing. Thus, the governments are gradually shifting their focus towards desalination technology, to offer a sustainable alternative to the conventional water treatment technologies for human consumption, irrigation, and various industrial uses. Thus, the increasing urbanization, rising shortage of groundwater, and increasing water demand-supply gap are anticipated to drive the desalination system market during the forecast period.

The report: “Desalination System Market – Forecast (2020-2025)”, by IndustryARC, covers an in-depth analysis of the following segments of the desalination system Industry. 

By Feed Water: Seawater, Brackish Water, Surface Water (Rivers, Streams), and Others

By Method: Thermal Technology (Multi-Stage Flash Distillation (MSF), Multi-Effect Distillation (MED), and Vapor Compression Distillation (VCD)), Membrane Technology (Electrodialysis (ED), Electrolysis Reversal (EDR), Reverse Osmosis (RO), and others), and Others

By End-Use Industry: Municipal (Water Supply and Sewerage, Stormwater Drainage, Seawater Desalination, O&M, and Others), Industrial (Water Supply, Wastewater Treatment, Water Recycling, and Others), and Others

By Geography: North-America, South-America, Europe, Asia Pacific, and RoW

The seawater segment held the largest share in the desalination system market in 2019, owing to the increasing acceptance of seawater medium as a viable alternative for the fresh sources by various government bodies such as the California State Water Resources Control Board. Over 97% of the earth’s water is unsuitable for human consumption due to its salinity and about 99% of this is seawater. Purification of the sea saline water promises for nearly unlimited water resources for human civilizations in coastal regions. The desalination of seawater has the potential to produce enough potable water to sustain the large population, which is the key factor anticipated to boost the demand for seawater desalination during the forecast period.

The reverse osmosis segment held the largest share in the desalination system market in 2019, as it is being widely used for both brackish water and seawater desalination as well as for wastewater treatment, recovery, and reuse. The popularity of reverse osmosis has increased as its post-treatment section consists of lime treatment for pH correction and chlorination for disinfection, which is required to meet public health standards. According to the Government of India, the membrane used during the reverse Osmosis method has a tight pore structure (less than 0.0001 microns) which effectively removes up to 99% of all contaminants and impurities such as total dissolved solids, viruses, bacteria and chemicals from drinking water. Also, anti-microbial filters are used during the reverse osmosis method which helps to separate the unwanted odors, colors, and tastes from water. Moreover, reverse osmosis is less costly and requires less space than the other desalination methods, which is the key factor anticipated to enhance the demand for reverse osmosis techniques during the forecast period.

The municipal industry held the largest share in the desalination system market in 2019 and is growing at a CAGR of 8.3%, owing to the wide applications of desalination systems in the municipal industries such as water supply & sewerage, stormwater drainage, seawater desalination and more. Also, there is increasing usage of desalination systems in the municipal industries as water supply and sewerage infrastructure is essential to maintain drinking water quality, preserve water quality at water sources and to ensure proper sewage treatment for protecting public health. With the increasing population the source of high quality and fresh drinking water is decreasing, which is driving the need for desalination systems.

Middle East and Africa region held the largest share in the desalination system market in 2019 up to 42%, owing to the increasing demand for freshwater in the region. The Middle East and Africa lie in an arid area of the world with severe climatic conditions and an absence of permanent natural water resources such as lakes and rivers due to which the demand for water is also growing in the region. According to International Trade Administration, Saudi Arabia is also known to be the world’s largest producer of desalinated water in the world, accounting for 25 percent of global supply, and the world’s largest desalination facility is located there, which is another factor driving the desalination system market in the region. According to International Trade Administration, the Government of Saudi Arabia with Vision 2030 and National Transformation Program (NTP) took an initiative to increase the percentage of cities and citizens receiving water and sewerage services by tripling the percentage of desalinated water to 52 percent by 2020.  In 2019, the UAE government approved $1.6 billion for water and energy projects and they also started ‘UAE Water Security Strategy 2036’ initiative to reduce water scarcity index and total demand for water resources, increase the reuse of treated water and water productivity index. Thus the increasing demand for water coupled with the various initiatives by the government is anticipated to drive the desalination system market in the Middle East and Africa region during the forecast period.

Due to the Covid-19 Pandemic, the demand of freshwater is substantially increasing. One of the primary advices by world health organization (WHO) is to regularly wash hands thoroughly to prevent the transfer of the disease as washing hands with soap and water is one of the best possible ways to remove the novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2), which means that the provision of clean and safe water by utilities is vital to stop the disease spreading. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said wastewater treatment plants do treat viruses and other pathogens and that the virus is particularly susceptible to disinfection. Therefore, the spread of coronavirus has increased government focus to provide fresh and pure water, which is driving the desalination system market.

Governments are investing heavily in the desalination system in various regions, to fulfill the increasing demand of fresh water from the population. According to National Water Mission, during 12th Plan, the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MES) proposed to take up the work of setting up of six desalination plants in the islands of Lakshadweep and a rigid off-shore platform based LTTD pilot demonstration plant (with a capacity of generating 10 MLD of fresh water) in India. Also, a floating off-shore plant of larger capacity and techno-economical solar desalination units for commercial implementation in coastal and rural areas will be established in India. In 2017, the U.S. Department of Energy declared funding of $15 million to evolve the solar desalination technologies that will help create freshwater from otherwise unusable waters. Thus, various initiatives taken by the government acts as a driver for the desalination market during the forecast period.

It is extremely costly to build and manage a desalination system. Once the desalination system is fully prepared it requires a huge amount of energy. Energy costs are the major reason for the increased production cost of the desalinated system. Impact on the marine body is another disadvantage to water desalination systems. The salt filtered from the water, recognized as brine, is known to change the salinity in the water at the disposal site, which leads to stressing or killing animals that are not adapted to the higher levels of salt. The discharged brine also decreases the oxygen levels in the water, causing animals and plants to suffocate. Thus, the high processing costs and the environmental impacts of desalination system may restrain the market growth during the forecast period.

Technology launches, acquisitions, and R&D activities are key strategies adopted by players in the desalination system market. In 2019, the market of desalination system has been consolidated by the top five players accounting for xx% of the share. Major players in the desalination system market are Dupont, The Dow Chemical Company, GE Corporation, Koch Industries Inc., TOYOBO CO., LTD., Nitto Denko Corporation, Toray Industries, Inc., Vontron Membrane Technology Co Ltd, Kurita Water Industries Ltd., and Veolia Environnement S.A.