Waste to energy (WTE) is also known as energy from waste and includes the energy recovery process in the form of electricity or heat through the waste collected. Usually, the electricity is produced due to thermal combustion or produces combustible fuels like ethanol, synthetic fuels, methane, or methanol.
Owing to the rising concerns regarding the environmental safety and the need to curb pollution around the world, the governments are imposing several constructive policies which encourage the growth of the global waste to energy market. Governments are also planning to monetize alternate energy production sources like WTE owing to the increased depletion of the traditional sources. The global waste to the energy market is estimated to revolutionize the way usable energy is produced and consumed. Moreover, due to the rise in industrial waste and public disposable waste it has become important to find ways to make their right use. Some of the methods used in waste to energy treatment are incineration, pyrolysis, gasification, and biochemical treatments.
The outbreak of the pandemic has affected almost all the industries and sectors in the world in terms of financial losses. Besides, people have faced emotional and personal losses, with the government facing losses in GDP. Thus, the government and the industries including waste to energy sector are also taking supportive measures to refill the losses and move ahead to maintain the ecological balances.
Nevertheless, increasing concerns about environmental issues with respect to the incineration process is foreseen to hamper the overall growth of the global waste to energy market in the developing or developed nations. However, rising investments by the players and the governments in research & development activities are foreseen to create several growth opportunities in the industry in the forthcoming years.
The global waste to energy market is majorly divided into product type, application, and region. On the basis of product type, the market is divided into farm waste, biocrop materials, food waste, and sewage sludges. In terms of application, the global market is bifurcated into vehicle fuel and gas grid.
Geographically, the global waste to energy market is foreseen to be led by Asia Pacific with the highest market share within the forecast period. This is attributed to the rising awareness among the people regarding environment conservation and supportive steps by the government of various countries to convert waste to energy at affordable cost. The region is trailed by North America, with the highest demand regarding power generation in the US. Thus, it is emerging as the major country contributing to regional growth as it has the highest demand to convert power from renewable energy sources. Besides, Europe and the Middle East & Africa regions are also witnessing growth due to several companies investing in the waste to energy conversion projects.
Suez Environment S.A., Waste Management Inc., C&G Environmental Protection Holdings, China Everbright International Limited, Constructions industrielles de la Méditerranée (CNIM), Covanta Energy Corporation, Abu Dhabi National Energy Company PJSC, Foster Wheeler A.G., Babcock & Wilcox Enterprises, Inc., Veolia Environment, Foster Wheeler A.G., and others are some of the leading firms operating in the global waste to energy market.
To cite, a new organization in the West Midlands around the UK collaborated with Wheelabrator, a leader in waste to energy conversion, along with Low Carbon and Verus Energy Limited, which are environment-centric companies. The collaboration aims to generate electricity for nearly around 70,000 houses.
