A new analysis of the European water industry published by Frost & Sullivan, the international marketing consulting company, concludes that the advanced water and wastewater treatment equipment market has nearly reached the maturation stage of its lifecycle, whilst displaying a number of significant growth opportunities yet to be exploited.
The European advanced water and wastewater treatment equipment market is characterised by consolidation, increasingly fierce levels of competitiveness, as well as a clear shift in demand from the municipal to the industrial sector. Growing interest in water recycling technology and the projected low level of price increases further typify this industry.
Growth is predominantly being encouraged by the provision of European Union regulations. These place demands on both municipalities and industrial end-users over the control and release of effluents into the aquatic environment. The municipalities have traditionally offered the lion's share of revenues to companies active in this area, says the study.
Matthew Barker, Research Analyst at Frost & Sullivan, continues: "In order to comply with regulations, industrial end-users are now much more aware of the advantages of using this technology to process their effluents on-site, for the recycling of water or the provision of highly purified process water."
Continued compliance with the many areas of water quality governed by EU Directives, as well as industrial demand for clean process water and the increasing trend towards water recycling are the key driving forces in the market, pushing total revenues from $716.0 million in 1999 to $1.03 billion by the end of the review period in 2006.
"Inadequately treated urban wastewater is one of the chief forms of water pollution. The Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive (Council Directive 91/271/EEC concerning urban waste water treatment) has a key role to play in efforts to improve EU water quality by requiring that cities, towns and other population centres meet minimum waste water collection and treatment standards by deadlines stipulated in the Directive," Matthew Barker adds.
Those mature markets where the directive has almost been met are experiencing demand from their industrial end-users, with sales of these types of systems becoming increasingly popular in the chemicals, microelectronics and pulp and paper industries.
The growing problem of eutrophication, increasing equipment awareness, soaring industrial demand, replacement of ageing treatment plants, water recycling and groundwater problems represent further factors fuelling growth in the European advanced water and wastewater treatment equipment market.
Over the past two years, prices for discharge into a mains sewer have been raised across Europe. With the rising level of pollutants in effluents from industry this has been carried out to help the municipal treatment works cover the costs for new equipment to reach their strict discharge consents, hereby advocating the 'polluter pays principle'. The increasing adoption of the 'polluter pays principle' is set to provide overall market growth with a further boost.
Membrane separation equipment currently holds the majority of percentage revenues, accounting for 44.4 per cent in 1999. Whilst the two more mature technologies of absorption and adsorption equipment will both experience decline in their market share over the forecast period, the rising acceptance of membrane products will continue to drive the membrane separation equipment market into its rosy future.
Both ultraviolet and ozonation equipment will both become more popular as the number of applications rises and the prices for equipment fall over the forecast period.
The European market for ion exchange water treatment technologies is very mature, although there are still growth opportunities in the development of niche products, particularly in the areas of nitrates and pesticide removal, which is an area of great concern in the region at present.
Whilst the mature German market currently seizes the largest revenue share, the UK and Ireland constitute the most dynamic national markets throughout Europe. Despite robust growth in virtually all segments across all countries, some regions will appear to decrease in significance slightly in favour of the above mentioned regions.
Amongst the leading suppliers in the market are companies such as Degrémont and OTV who can provide a full range of treatment technologies. The list of leading players featured in Frost & Sullivan's study also includes companies who operate extremely well at a segment level such as Ozonia, Hanovia and Wedeco.
Frost & Sullivan is an international marketing consulting company that monitors a comprehensive spectrum of high-tech markets, including the water and wastewater industry for market trends, market measurements and strategies. This ongoing research is utilised to complement a series of research publications--such as the Central and Eastern European Water and Wastewater Treatment Equipment Markets (report #3792-15)--to support industry participants with customised consulting needs. Free executive summaries of all Frost & Sullivan reports are available to the press.
Research Publication: 3793-15 - European Advanced Water and Wastewater Treatment System Markets
Publication Date: April 2000
