World Water Disinfection Product Demand to Exceed $8 Billion in 2014

World demand for water disinfection products is projected to increase 7.5 percent annually to more than $8 billion in 2014.  Gains will be healthy in essentially every region, although the underlying reasons for these increases will vary between the world’s most advanced regions and developing areas.  Traditional chemical disinfection technologies will account for a majority of overall demand, but onsite chemical generation and nonchemical disinfection techniques are expected to register faster growth. These and other trends, including market share and product segmentation, are presented in World Water Disinfection Products, a new study from The Freedonia Group, Inc., a Cleveland-based industry market research firm.

In the developed world, gains will be prompted by efforts to reduce the environmental impact of water disinfection.  Traditional disinfection can lead to the formation of disinfection byproducts (DBPs) such as trihalomethanes and haloacetic acids.  Also, greater emphasis will be placed on more responsible wastewater treatment practices.  In developing areas such as the rapidly industrializing economies in Asia and newer members of the European Union (EU) in Eastern Europe, efforts are underway to draw water treatment rates and quality into line with more advanced regional neighbors, such as Japan and the western EU member states, respectively.  In the world’s least developed regions, including much of South Asia and most of sub-Saharan Africa, growth for water disinfection products will be based mainly on extension of access to water supplies in areas where no previous access had existed. 

Chemicals will continue to account for the majority of overall demand for disinfection products.  Chlorine is still the most widely used technology in the world because it is readily available, inexpensive and very effective, although there are concerns about handling the chemical and the DBPs produced by its use.  The industrial segment, especially in developed areas, will remain dominated by specialty biocides, including a variety of bromine-based compounds.  Disinfection equipment is expected to register faster growth than chemicals through the forecast period.  Ultraviolet (UV) technologies are becoming more widely used, beyond their original main niche in wastewater disinfection.  Ozone, chemical generation equipment and other niche products are also expected to register strong growth. 

The Freedonia Group is a leading international business research company, founded in 1985, that publishes more than 100 industry research studies annually. This industry analysis provides an unbiased outlook and a reliable assessment of an industry and includes product segmentation and demand forecasts, industry trends, demand history, threats and opportunities, competitive strategies, market share determinations and company profiles.