The Global Waste Management Market Anticipated to Generate a Revenue of $2319.5 Billion, Growing at a CAGR of 5.6% from 2020 to 2027 - Research Dive

The global waste management market is estimated to be valued at $2319.5 billion by 2027, surging from $2075.8 billion in 2019 at a noteworthy CAGR of 5.6%.

Impact Analysis of COVID-19 on the Waste Management Market

The global market for waste management is estimated to experience a negative growth amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The growth is declining amidst the pandemic times due to shortage of labors, rapid increase in the amount of generated waste, and lack of efficient waste management to handle huge amount of waste generated from municipal, industrial and hazardous segments. Further, hazardous waste production increased from medical and pharmaceutical sectors. The existing waste management system was completely overwhelmed leading to stock piling of waste, inadequate disposal, open dumping, or burning of waste. Also, the recycling of plastic waste slowed down due to perceived risk of COVID-19 transmission and the use of single-use plastics increased rapidly. All these factors have greatly affected the waste management market.

Certain key vendors operating in waste management market, such as Biffa Plc, Clean Harbors Inc. are adopting acquisitions and capacity expansion strategies for staying ahead in the competitive environment. For instance, in March 2021, Biffa Plc, a leading UK-based integrated waste management company, had increased its recycling capacity to further recycle 14,000 tons of HDPE via $15.21 million Washington investment. With this investment the total annual recycling capacity of Biffa Plc increased to 39,000 tons each year.

Waste management is important as it reduces the environmental pollution and 70% of all the generated waste can be recycled into new materials or objects that can be used. This reduces the emission of greenhouse gases and large amount of waste being dumped into the landfill. Also, waste-to-energy process involves generating energy in the form of electricity by heating the waste at high temperatures. This is the renewable source of energy generated from waste. These factors are anticipated to create lucrative investment opportunities during the forecast period.

Global Waste Management Market Analysis

The enormous growth of the global waste management market is mainly attributed to large amount of waste generated due to rapid urbanization, economic growth, and migration of people to urban areas. For instance, stated in the International Finance Corporation which is a part of World Bank Group, the world generates over 2 billion metric tonnes of Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) and by 2050 this amount will increase upto 3.4 billion metric tonnes. These estimates state the importance of effective waste management. The waste generated in developing countries is subjected to poor waste collection methods, insufficient tariffs, and improperly managed dumping sites. With rapid urbanization the developing countries are also focusing on waste management to reduce the environmental and health impact. For instance, as stated in International Journal of Scientific & Technology Research, an international open access journal that focuses on sciences, technology & engineering, on December 12, 2019, the waste management in India focuses on the motto Refuse, Reduce, Reuse and Recycle. This indicates using fewer resources, reusing the products whichever are possible, and recycling the products to generate new materials. All these aspects are estimated to drive the market for waste management and fuel the growth of the market.

The high cost involved in recycling of waste materials as building a recycling unit needs huge capital may obstruct the growth of the market. The construction of new waste recycling unit involves the cost of new bins, waste collecting vehicles, creating awareness programs which are time consuming and costly are expected to hamper the market during the forecast period.

The government measures and regulations on illegal dumping or burning of waste in open areas that leads to pollution and other health hazards is estimated to create huge opportunities for the global waste management market in the future. The governments are focusing on building Waste To Energy (WTE) plants that can generate electricity from waste and also building the recycling units that can efficiently recycle the waste for its reuse. For instance, the Indian Oil Corporation and North Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC) are working together to establish WTE plant in Ranikhera, New Delhi. This plant is estimated to process 2,500 tonnes of waste per day that can generate biogas, synthesis gas, and can also recycle plastics. Such initiatives are estimated to drive the market growth and create huge growth opportunities in the market during the review period.

Global Waste Management Market, Segmentation

The global waste management market is segmented based on type, service, and region.

Type:

The type segment is further classified into municipal, industrial, and hazardous. Among these, the industrial sub-segment is anticipated to have the fastest growth and surpass $2,064.2 billion by 2027, with an increase from $1,859.2 billion in 2019. The growth is majorly attributed to rapid industrialization giving rise to enormous amount of industrial waste. The industrialization and urbanization activities in emerging countries such as India and China are increasing the demand for industrial waste management. For instance, in April 2020, the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress, China approved an amendment to the country’s solid waste statute. The new law includes prevention and control of pollution from industrial waste.  All these factors may create a positive impact on the industrial sub-segment throughout the forecast period.

Service:

The method segment is further divided into collection and disposable. The disposable sub-segment is anticipated to have a dominating share in the global market and register a revenue of $1,230.2 billion during the analysis timeframe. The disposable sub-segment comprises of various waste disposal methods such as incineration or combustion, plasma gasification, landfills, recycling, composting, and others. The disposable sub-segment has accounted for highest growth as it disposes large amount of waste, involves recycling process and less amount of waste goes to the landfill. The waste disposable service reduces pollution, conserves energy by recycling the waste, and creates employment for the people. These factors may aid in the generation of lucrative revenue throughout the forecast period for the disposable sub-segment.

Region:

The waste management market for the Asia-Pacific region is projected to witness rapid growth. This region generated a revenue of 1,183.4 billion in 2019 and is further projected to reach up to $1,366.0 billion by 2027. The growth in infrastructure, waste management reforms and rise in urban population is estimated to drive the demand for waste management market. For instance, China, which is the most populous country with growing infrastructure has introduced drastic measures in January 2019, that focuses on “zero waste” plan and aims to achieve 35% recycled waste by 2020 and ban on plastic bags till 2022. These aspects are anticipated to boost the market growth in the Asia-Pacific region.

Key Players in the Global Waste Management Market

Some of the leading global waste management market players are –

1. Biffa Plc
2. Clean Harbors, Inc.
3. Covanta Holding Corporation
4. Daiseki Co., Ltd
5. Hitachi Zosen Corporation
6. Remondis Se & Co. Kg
7. Republic Services, Inc
8. Suez
9. Waste Management, Inc
10. Casella Waste Systems Inc.

Along with the company profiles of the key players in the market, the report includes the Porter’s five forces model that gives deep insights into the competitive environment of the market.

Porter’s Five Forces Analysis for the Global Waste management Market

• Bargaining Power of Suppliers: The companies involved in waste management business are moderate in number. These companies are working on capacity expansions, acquisitions, and partnership to deal with the expensive supplies. Further, the volatile demands in supplier pricing may impact company profitability.
  Thus, the bargaining power of the suppliers is moderate.
• Bargaining Power of Buyers: Buyers have low bargaining power, primarily because of the moderate number of suppliers, waste management regulations laid down by the government. The buyers have less choice in selecting the waste management method. 
  Hence, the bargaining power of buyers is low.
• Threat of New Entrants: Startups entering this market are making advancements in the waste management solutions. Further, the switching cost of the buyers is not high.
  As a result, the threat of the new entrants is moderate.
• Threat of Substitutes: There is no alternative product for waste management.
  Therefore, the threat of substitutes is low.
• Competitive Rivalry in the Market: The ventures operating in the global waste management market are focusing on strategies such as acquisitions, product innovations and capacity expansion to hold their position in the market. Such initiatives help the companies in strengthening the footprint worldwide.
  Therefore, competitive rivalry in the market is moderate.