Demand worldwide for plastic pipe is set to balloon to 20.6 billion metres by 2019 - a 6.5 per cent increase.
Pipe
This is according to a fresh report by Freedonia, which indicates strong activity in the construction sector in China and the US is boosting demand.
Plastic piping is being put to use both in building and nonbuilding segments. Construction applications make up the largest share of plastic pipe demand and will support growth through the forecast period. Although construction spending is predicted to decelerate in China, the world's largest plastic pipe market, plastic pipe demand in the country will still rise by about nine per cent annually through to 2019. A continuing recovery in construction spending and housing completions will support rapid advances for plastic pipe demand in the US.
Growth in plastic pipe demand will also be robust in many developing countries. Efforts to expand access to potable water and sewage systems will boost plastic pipe demand in Africa, Asia, and South America, the report claims. The market opportunity for these utilities is large; in many areas of the world, a big share of the population does not yet have reliable access to drinking water supply or improved sanitation. The comparatively low cost and ease of installation of plastic pipe will provide it advantages over other pipe materials in these regions.
Indeed, the performance, cost, and installation advantages of plastic piping are further increasing its usage over competing pipe materials such as concrete, copper, and steel.
The energy, manufacturing, and agriculture sectors are less intensive users of plastic pipe than the construction market. However, improvements in technology and plastic resins have helped plastic pipe increase its share in many of these markets. For example, in most oil and gas applications, plastic accounts for only a small share of the total pipe market, but increasing use of some materials, such as fiberglass in oil pipelines and HDPE in natural gas distribution, will support global plastic pipe demand going forward.
PVC is the leading resin used in plastic pipe. PVC pipe demand is projected to accelerate through 2019, reaching 30.3 million metric tons on 6.7 per cent annual advances. Growth will be supported by improving construction expenditures. However, HDPE has registered stronger growth over the past decade due to its increasing use in the energy market, as well as the growing use of PEX (crosslinked polyethylene) pipe in potable water distribution applications. Through 2019, HDPE demand is projected to rise 7.2 per cent per annum to 17.5 million metric tonnes. While other resins have seen greater usage in some markets, including energy and building construction, their share of the global market will remain small.
The industry study World Plastic Pipe presents historical demand data (2004, 2009 and 2014) plus forecasts (2019 and 2024) by market and resin for six world regions and 24 countries. The study also considers market environment factors, evaluates company market share and profiles 31 global industry competitors such as Mexichem (Mexico), JM Eagle (US), China Lesso, Aliaxis (Belgium), Sekisui Chemical (Japan), Future Pipe (UAE), and Formosa Plastics (Taiwan).
The full report is available here: https://www.reportbuyer.com/product/3159096/
