World Catalyst Demand to Reach $17.2 Billion in 2014

World demand for chemical synthesis, petroleum refining and polymerization catalysts will rise 6.0 percent per year to $17.2 billion in 2014, reflecting a combination of healthy volume and price growth from a weak 2009 base.  Chemical synthesis and polymerization catalysts will experience the strongest growth, benefiting from rapid gains in the Middle East and Asia, as well as in Brazil.  While petroleum refining catalyst demand will expand at a healthy pace, advances will be limited by weak motor vehicle fuel demand in Japan, the United States and Western Europe.  These and other trends, including market share and product segmentation, are presented in World Catalysts, a new study from The Freedonia Group, Inc., a Cleveland-based industry market research firm.

The strongest growth through 2014 will occur in the Middle East, where Saudi Arabia and other countries will continue to invest in new chemical and polymer capacity in an effort to exploit their natural gas and petroleum reserves.  Refining capacity will also be expanded in the Middle East to satisfy the region’s rapidly rising fuel demand.  In Asia, China and India will also drive rapid growth through 2014, offsetting slower growth in Japan.

Strong growth in Central and South America will be led by Brazil, which is well positioned to expand its regional dominance of the chemical, petroleum refining and polymer industries due to the recent discovery of plentiful natural gas and petroleum reserves off the country’s coast.  The US, Canada and Western Europe will also realize gains in catalyst demand, though growth will trail the global average as companies avoid investing in new chemical and polymer capacity due to the mature nature of these markets. 

Demand for all types of chemical synthesis catalysts will be strong going forward, though the pace of consumption of enzymes for ethanol production will moderate through 2014 following rapid growth over the 2004-2009 period.  In polymerization catalysts, single-site and Ziegler-Natta catalysts will achieve the strongest gains.  Hydrotreating catalysts will continue to achieve the best growth in the petroleum refining market, aided by the increasingly sour nature of the crude petroleum supplied to the market, as well as efforts by Brazil, China, India and Russia to improve their air quality by the introduction of low-sulfur fuels.  Hydrocracking and fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) catalysts will also achieve healthy advances, particularly in Asia as the growing motor vehicle fleet stimulates new gasoline and diesel fuel demand.

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.