A new report says that dwindling fresh water resources coupled with the rapid growth of water-intensive industries is driving the water and wastewater treatment market in Brunei, Hong Kong, Maldives and Taiwan, with “foreign market participants favoured over local service providers.”
New analysis from Frost & Sullivan says that opportunities for market participants abound as these countries look for technologies to reduce and monitor non-revenue water, reuse wastewater, promote water delivery efficiency, and retrofit existing water treatment plants to process and provide more potable water.
In Taiwan and Maldives, the report says expansion and retrofitting of WWWT plants are “expected to be rampant” in the rural areas.
Water and Wastewater Treatment (WWWT) Market in Brunei, Hong Kong, Maldives, and Taiwan - A CEO 360 Degree Perspective, finds that the market earned revenues of US$370.3 million in 2012 and estimates this to reach US$536.9 million in 2017.
"Stringent legislations – that prohibit the discharge of harmful effluents in the sea, enforce the treatment of wastewater, and minimize overall environmental degradation – are forcing industrial players to adopt robust WWWT equipment," said Frost & Sullivan Energy & Environment Research Analyst Janice Wung. "Additionally, the influx of multinational companies into Brunei, Hong Kong, Maldives and Taiwan is pushing local firms to identify and address the irregularities in their water and wastewater management process, in turn widening market potential."
“Foreign market participants are favoured over local service providers”
The report also says that foreign market participants are favoured over local service providers due to the advanced technologies and technically skilled manpower they possess, suggesting:
“Foreign players would do well to target these countries in the following order – Taiwan, Brunei, Hong Kong and Maldives – to boost their overall profitability.”
For domestic participants, apart from the lack of skilled manpower and high dependency on foreign assistance due to limited capital investment and funding offered by local authorities,the report says intense competition is denting growth prospects in Brunei, Hong Kong, Maldives and Taiwan.
"To establish a stronghold, WWWT system manufacturers should customize their solutions to meet the specific needs of end-user groups," suggested Wung. "For instance, they should provide functional WWWT solutions with low maintenance and operational costs to cost-conscious public-sector customers whereas private sector customers can be offered low-cost, low-tech as well as expensive one-stop-shop solutions to address their water-related requirements."
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