Thermoplastic Pipe Market - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2022 - 2027)

The thermoplastic pipe market is expected to grow at a CAGR of over 3% during the forecast period of 2020-2025. The service cost of maintaining a pipeline can be reduced by using thermoplastic pipes, that are cheaper in prices, takes less time to install, and are corrosion resistant. The major driver of the market is the increasing demand for non-corrosive pipelines in the oil & gas industry and increasing uses in the municipal sector, majorly in the Asia-Pacific region. However, the unpredictable failure of thermoplastic pipes, especially in the oil & gas sector is expected to hinder the market growth in the coming years.

Key Highlights

• Oil & Gas is one of the prominent sectors that is using thermoplastic for oil & gas transportation. High corrosion on the conventional pipes, attracts the oil & gas operators to move towards thermoplastic pipes.
• Thermoplastic pipes are non-corrosive and don’t require any kind of maintenance. With the increasing rate of oil & gas activities around the world, especially in the offshore sector, there is much possibility of uses of thermoplastic pipes to have lower maintenance charges than the conventional pipes. Furthermore, the involvement of high corrosive fluid during enhance oil recovery (EOR) require regular maintenance of conventional pipes. Replacement of EOR pipelines with the thermoplastic pipe is expected to create an opportunity as well.
• The Asia Pacific is dominating the thermoplastic market, with a higher rate of thermoplastic pipes for water transportation. Moreover, with the growing oil & gas activities, the region is expected to dominate the market in the forecast period as well.

Key Market Trends

Oil & Gas Industry to Dominate the Market

• Oil & Gas sector includes transportation pipelines, domestic pipelines, flowlines, and several other pipelines. These metallic pipelines often need to be maintained to get rid of corrosion. Uses of thermoplastic is an alternative to the conventional pipe, which need not require any kind of maintenance. It can be rolled out to the operation site and can be easily installed. Moreover, the pipes have resistance to varying pressure up to 450 bar and temperature up to 105°C.
• Thermoplastic pipe as a gas pipeline under domestic uses is one of the prominent applications in the oil & gas sector. The pipelines can be installed at a faster rate, of an average speed of around 1000 meters per day, this indicates the faster installation of domestic gas and leads to a reduction of waiting time for the customers.
• As of 2018, there are over 1 million kilometers of pipelines in operation, and under construction, that needs maintenance at regular interval. Out of the total, approximately 0.14 million kilometers of pipelines are planned and under construction. With the installation and commissioning of these pipelines, the maintenance services of the pipes are expected to add up to the overall operating expense. Consideration of thermoplastic in the sector is expected to reduce the maintenance charges in the future.

Asia-Pacific to Dominate the Market

• With an increasing population in the region, the demand for water transport and energy demand is expected to increase during the forecast period. Water, an essential commodity, is mostly transported through PVC pipes, while oil & gas are mostly transported through polyethylene pipes.
• PVC is strong and lightweight, durable to weathering, rotting, chemical corrosion and abrasion, versatile, and easy to use, as it can be cut, shaped, bend, and joined in any style. Such characteristics make it an ideal option for many applications, such as water transportation.
• The global urban population has grown rapidly from 751 million in 1950 to 4.2 billion in 2018. Asia-Pacific, despite having a lower level of urbanization, the region is home to nearly 54% of the global population. Between the period 2018 and 2050, India and China are expected to account for nearly 30% of the global projected urban population. The increase in urbanization is expected to increase the demand for oil & gas and water transportation pipeline over upcoming years.

Competitive Landscape

The thermoplastic pipe market is fragmented. The key owners in the market include Pipelife Nederland BV., Airborne Oil & Gas BV, Master Tech Company FZC, Future Pipe Industries, AMIANTIT Service GmbH, Aetna Plastics Corporation, Cosmoplast Industry Co., F.W Webb Company, Tianjin Jingtong Pipe Industry Co., and BioCote Limited amongst others.

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