OXFORD, UK Jan. 28, 2008 -- A new global water market forecast published by Global Water Intelligence suggests that the market for desalination and water reuse technology will expand rapidly. Global desalination capacity is expected to increase from 52 million m³/d in 2008 to 107 million m³/d in 2016. Over the same period, advanced wastewater reuse will see capacity triple from 20 million cubic metres to 60 million m³/d.
Over the decade 2007-2016 $64 billion will be spent on building desalination plants around the world, and £25.6 billion on advanced water reuse projects.
Christopher Gasson says: "Across the world millions of people are dependent on non-renewable water: they are draining the aquifers and depleting the rivers. What is left becomes mineralised, threatening ecosystems and reducing agricultural yields.
"People in the developing world are eating more protein, which means more water is needed to grow animal feeds. They also want to grow more crops for biofuel. This puts pressure on food prices, but the real story is in water. That is the ultimate limiting factor. And with urban demand for water growing apace, the only solution is to make more of what we have got.
"That means demand management, desalination, and water reuse. Global Water Market 2008 paints a picture of the emergence of a robust global industry. However, the environmental and human cost of getting it wrong is clear."
Among the companies expected to gain from the growth of this market are: General Electric, Veolia Environment, Suez, Siemens, Acciona, Abengoa, Christ Water Technologies, Hyflux.
For further details on the forecast, Global Water Market 2008: Opportunities in Scarcity and Environmental Regulation, published by Global Water Intelligence, see: www.globalwaterintel.com/GWM2008/
###
