Methanol Market worth 54.16 Bn USD by 2021

Friday 22 July 2016, Amsterdam

The report, now available on ASDReports, "Methanol Market by Feedstock (Natural Gas and Coal), Derivative (Formaldehyde, MTO/MTP, Gasoline, MTBE, and MMA), Sub-derivative (UF/PF Resins and Olefins), End-Use Industry (Construction, Automotive, and Electronics) and by Region - Global Trends & Forecasts to 2021", The global methanol market is projected to reach USD 54.16 Billion by 2021, registering a CAGR of 12.4% between 2016 and 2021. This growth is fueled by the use of methanol as fuel in the automotive industry, increasing olefins production from methanol-to-olefin (MTO)/methanol-to-propylene (MTP) plants in China, and increasing petrochemicals demand, globally.

Coal: The largest feedstock of methanol

The global production of methanol is 40 million tons per year, most of which is produced from natural gas and oil. However, high prices and limited reserves of natural gases in certain geographical areas such as China and Africa have stimulated interest in unconventional feedstock for the production of methanol. Thus, coal comes across as a sustainable alternative raw material for large scale methanol production owing to its abundance, low cost and efficient coal gasification technology.

MTO/MTP: The fastest-growing derivative of methanol

MTO/MTP is the fastest-growing derivative segment in the methanol market. Methanol-to-olefins and methanol-to-propylene (MTO/MTP) applications are gaining momentum and are expected to become the largest derivative of methanol, in terms of both, value and volume, by 2021. Ethylene and propylene are the major feedstocks of polyethylene and polypropylene plastics, respectively, which are in huge demand. The demand of these olefins is the major driver for the massive growth of the methanol market in MTO/MTP derivative.

Asia-Pacific: The largest and fastest-growing market for methanol

Asia-Pacific is the most favorable market for chemicals, power, and fuels and is anticipated to be the same in the coming years. The continuous rise in the production of methanol, as an alternative fuel for automotive in the region is the main driving force of the methanol market.  The growing demand and policies including emission control, environment friendly products, and so on, have led to innovation and developments in the industry, making it a strong methanol production hub, globally. The excessive growth in the production of olefins, and rise in MTO/MTP plants in China since last few years are working as a driver in the methanol production in the Asia-Pacific region.

The methanol market has a few global players competing significantly for the market share, who are actively investing in various strategies such as expansions and joint ventures & agreements globally to increase their market. Also, companies are investing in R&D activities. Key players such as Methanex Corporation (Canada), SABIC (Saudi Arabia), PETRONAS (Malaysia), Mitsubishi Gas Chemical Company (Japan), and Mitsui & Co., Ltd. (Japan) have adopted various organic and inorganic developmental strategies.