by The refinery catalyst market deals with catalysts that help refineries convert crude oil into useful products like gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, and other petrochemicals. Refinery catalysts facilitate various cracking and reforming reactions in the refining process to produce light hydrocarbon fractions from heavy crude oil. Vacuum gas oil, residua, and other heavy crude fractions undergo catalytic cracking to produce gasoline, liquefied petroleum gas, and other light product fractions. Catalytic reforming reactions convert naphthenic hydrocarbon fractions into high-octane components for gasoline. Other refinery reactions such as hydroprocessing, isomerization, and alkylation also utilize specialized catalyst formulations. Compared to conventional thermal cracking methods, catalytic conversions are more selective and produce higher quality end products at lower capital and operating costs. This has led to widespread adoption of catalysts in modern petroleum refineries globally.
The global refinery catalyst market is estimated to be valued at US$ 4.34 Bn in 2024 and is expected to exhibit a CAGR of 18% over the forecast period from 2024 to 2031.
Key Takeaways
Key players operating in the refinery catalyst market include Ashok Leyland, General Motors Company, Bosch Rexroth AG, Xiamen Golden Dragon Bus Co., Ltd., Daimler AG, Volvo Group, Volkswagen AG, Mahindra and Mahindra Ltd., Toyota Motor Corporation, and Tata Motors Ltd.
Major opportunity in the Refinery Catalyst Market Growth lies in developing catalyst materials that can withstand higher operating temperatures and work with heavier feedstocks containing more contaminants. This will help refiners process dirtier crudes and improve conversion efficiencies.
Rising fuel consumption globally driven by the transportation, industrial, and power generation sectors is leading refiners to expand crude processing capacities. This is increasing the demand for various catalysts used in refining units. Refining capacity additions across Asia Pacific and Middle Eastern countries are also boosting the volumes of catalysts consumption in these regions.
Market drivers
The main driver boosting the refinery catalyst market is the steady rise in fuel demand globally. Fuel consumption has been increasing consistently with growing population and economic activity levels worldwide. Road transportation remains a major consumer of diesel and gasoline pools globally. Rising vehicle ownership rates across developing nations and demand for middle distillates from the shipping industry are enhancing the requirement for transportation fuels. This escalates crude refining volumes and subsequent demand for catalysts from oil refineries. Expanding global refining capacities to meet the incessant fuel demand is also boosting the refinery catalyst market.
PEST Analysis
Political: The regulations around emission standards will impact the demand and types of refinery catalysts used by oil refineries. Stricter emission norms will boost the demand for advanced catalysts.
Economic: Rising fuel demand globally will drive the demand for oil refineries which in turn will boost the refinery catalyst market. Also economic cycles impacting oil prices will influence refinery operations and their spending on catalysts.
Social: Growing environmental sustainability awareness will push oil refineries to reduce emissions and invest in advanced catalyst technologies to produce cleaner fuels.
Technological: Continuous research and development is allowing new catalyst formulations that can improve selectivity, activity, longer on-stream time and reduce environmental footprint of refineries. Nanotechnology and material science advances can further optimize catalyst performance.
The geographical regions where the refinery catalyst market is concentrated in terms of value currently are North America and Europe. These developed markets have large refining capacities and established oil industries. Stricter emission norms also drive replacement demand for catalysts.
The Asia Pacific region is poised to be the fastest growing market for refinery catalyst during the forecast period. This is attributed to factors like growing energy needs of developing economies in the region, expansion of refining capacities especially in China and India, and pushing for cleaner fuels to meet emission norms.
*Note:
1. Source: Coherent Market Insights, Public sources, Desk research
2. We have leveraged AI tools to mine information and compile it
