Oil Storage Industry to Promote Supply and Storage Infrastructure

14th April 2020: The oil storage market stood at 1.42 billion cubic meters in 2015 given the high demand for oil production from end-use industries. In order to stock huge supply of crude oil, the providers are inclined to improve their infrastructure and inventories. Oil is purchased and stored by the companies that are vertically integrated. These companies store the oil until its cost inflates, selling the stock for immediate delivery. The stored oil could be shifted for refinement process and can be stored for a short duration of time. 

Downstream operations include number of levels of control and automation for enormous storage tanks and for processing. To protect the stockpiled volumes, the government and international entities launch support initiatives such as Strategic Petroleum Reserve. Under such initiatives and other similar schemes, the companies that are involved in stockpiling are protected from untimely price spikes and stock out situations. Oil is an important source of power and energy and its availability and distribution can contribute to the achievement of sustainable targets. 

High Quality Product with Unique Characteristics to Fuel the Growth

Based on product, the segment includes open top tanks (OTT) and fixed & floating roofs. Tank is designed on the basis of type of input such as feedstock and unfinished or finished product. OTT enhances the risks of fire incidents and product contamination and has major application in liquid with negligible to zero evaporative losses.

Decreasing prices of crude is fueling the growth of the oil storage industry. The fall of prices motivate the vendors to reserve and increase storage facilities. It plays a pivotal role in affecting the prices of various products such as gasoline and lubricants, propelling the market growth. 

Fixed roof accounted for the largest share of the segment due to its benefits such as high quality characteristics that minimize risks of a fire. The designing of the oil storage tanks coupled with minimum and affordable cost associated with its installation has led to high demand of the product over the past few years. Floating roof tanks (FRT) are also anticipated to witness huge demand over the forthcoming years. This is due to product design as its major feature includes evaporative losses and minimizing corrosion. FRT segment is categorized as external and internal. Floating roof is anticipated to grow at a CAGR of over 5% over the forecast period. 

Floating roof storage is likely to grow exponentially due to increasing demand for the storage of large quantities. It is also due to its capacity to store medium and low flash point petroleum products in huge numbers. It’s characteristic of largely decreasing the volatile organic compound emissions and also effectively contributing in reducing the product losses makes the adoption of these tanks more preferable.

Rise in demand for storing liquefied gases including nonrenewable liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) extracted from natural gas along with liquefied natural gas (LNG) that is cooled down to for safety and ease of non-pressurized transport and storage is likely to boost the market. Stringent government norms due to concerns of environmental pollution is a major factor spurring the demand for LNG.

Fixed roof oil units used to store high flash point liquids including kerosene, fuel oil, and diesel that offer great strength while largely responsible for reducing environmental impact, will also boost the product penetration. 

Market Insights

Some of the notable trends of the market include decreasing prices of the crude oil, rise in adoption of alternative fuels for cleaner shipping, and growth of liquefied natural gas (LNG).  Increasing demand for rising oil production, falling prices of crude oil, high storage capacities, increasing need for improving infrastructure, and availability of import or distribution facilities globally are driving the growth of the market. In addition, fluctuating rate of natural gases, exploration of alternative resources, increasing concern towards energy security, are factors likely to have a positive impact on high-quality storage. 

Along with regulatory norms, technological advancement and concerns for reducing environmental impact, and increasing usage of nonrenewable energy sources is likely to drive demand over the next nine years. For instance, Columbian Steel Tank Company has declared to invest in unique aluminum geodesic dome designs that would reduce UV degradation and environmental impact. Key players such as CST and Marquard & Bahls are now keen on offering a high degree of product containment to develop innovative product designs with high durability. Major companies of the oil storage market include Belco, Marquard & Bahls AG, Zepnotek Storage Tanks, ZCL Composites, Columbian Steel Tank, LF Manufacturing, and Palmer. 

Energy Management to Drive Thermal Energy Storage Market

18th October 2018: The worldwide thermal energy storage market is estimated to touch USD 12.5 billion by 2025, according to a report by Grand View Research, Inc. Thermal energy storage (TES) is a technology used to store heat energy. This technology allows companies to utilize the energy during winter or summer. It can even store energy from alternative sources such as biomass, sun, wind, and tides. TES can accumulate energy using technologies such as miscibility gap alloy (MGA) technology, solar energy storage, molten salt technology, ice-based technology, and electric thermal storage heaters. Major end users are residential, commercial, industrial, and utility sectors.

The reduced dependence on fossil fuels has led to the development of various alternative energy plants. TES is being increasingly used in concentrating solar power (CSP) plants to accumulate energy. For instance, the Crescent Dunes project in Nevada uses TES to power up nearly 75,000 homes during peak hours. Research on phase change materials is being undertaken due to its capacity to store more energy than sensible heat storage technology.

Energy manufacturers are capitalizing on Internet of Things (IoT) in order to control the demand and supply of energy at peak hours. IoT can be used in gathering accurate weather data and predict the lows and highs in energy storage systems. Contingency plans can be created to ensure savings of energy expenses and provide comfort during peak times. Software behemoths such as Google, Apple, and Facebook are also adopting a renewable energy generation method for their needs. This trend can influence various industrial players in pursuing the same route.

The thermal energy storage market is expected to grow at a healthy rate from 2014 to 2025 (forecast phase) owing to the demand for cost-efficient energy sources. The increasing demand from countries such as the U.S., Brazil, and Saudi Arabia and government policies encouraging renewable technologies are expected to bode well for market growth. The rise in electric vehicle infrastructure, establishment of smart grids, and demand for uninterrupted power supply is anticipated to open up new avenues for growth. Key market players include Dunham-Bush Holding Bhd., Abengoa Solar S.A., Chicago Bridge & Iron Company N.V. (CB&I), and Ice Energy.

Battery Recycling to Conserve Useful Metals and Reduce Harmful Emissions

3 October 2018: The global battery recycling market is predicted to value USD 21.04 billion by 2025, according to a report by Grand View Research, Inc. Environmental concerns to control harmful emissions from battery waste owing to increasing air pollution is expected to impel demand for battery recycling. Growing necessity to recover valuable materials and metals from used batteries can further stimulate the demand.

High demand for batteries from multiple end-use industries such as consumer electronic and automobile is likely to create scarcity of resources required for production of new batteries. Recovery of metals and other useful raw materials from used batteries can resolve the issue while reducing CO2 emissions. Such environmental benefits are likely to increase the demand for battery recycling. Considering the demand, most manufacturing companies are focusing on research investments to offer better products equipped with innovative technologies.

For instance, Toyota recently revealed that it is working on a new battery technology based on solid electrolyte against conventional semi-liquid state. The company believes that these new form of batteries are expected to be available in electric vehicles by 2020. The technology can possibly support production of compact and lightweight lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles. It can also offer longer usable life, potential product recycling, and alternative post-vehicle life to the batteries. Considering the benefits of this new technology, the automobile giant is predicting that it can come up as a big boom for automakers dealing in electric vehicles.   

Stringent government regulations to reduce harmful emissions owing to increasing air pollution can stimulate growth of battery recycling market. Growing awareness about benefits of recycling among humans is likely to drive growth of the market in the coming years. Increasing use of recovered metals to produce recycled batteries owing to reduced CO2 emissions and less consumption of energy in mining can foster market growth during the forecast period (2017 to 2025).

Some of the prominent companies operating in the market for battery recycling are Aqua Metals, Exide Technologies, Call2Recycle, ECOBAT, and G&P Batteries.

Read more @ 

https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/battery-recycling-market

Improvements in Li-ion Battery Performance to Ensure Greater Adoption in Consumer Electronics

7 September 2018: A lithium-ion battery or Li-ion battery is a rechargeable battery in which lithium ions travel from negative electrode to the positive electrode during discharging and reverse when charging. The constituent components of the battery are two electrodes and electrolyte, which allows the ionic movement. They are mainly used in portable equipment. They are also used across other industries including consumer electronics, automotive, energy storage systems, and industrial.

Energy Storage Systems: A Promising Application Segment for Li-ion Batteries

Among all the application areas, energy storage systems segment will exhibit the highest CAGR over the forecast period (from 2018 to 2025). Rising number of off-grid installations owing to government support can propel the segment growth. Increasing deployments of solar photovoltaics due to growing concerns regarding environment degradation are also contributing towards segment development.

Consumer electronics commanded the largest share in 2016. These batteries are acknowledged for their high reliability and durability in consumer electronics, such as smartphones and laptops. Booming electronics industry in countries, such as Japan, China, South Korea, and Taiwan, is likely to stir up the demand for Li-ion batteries. Constant improvements in the battery technology will further drive the segment growth.

For instance, in December 2017, researchers from Sandia National Laboratories discovered a way of augmenting the efficiency of solid-state batteries and improving the flow of lithium ions across battery interfaces such that the battery performance can be enhanced in small electronic devices.

Market Insights

According to a report by Grand View Research Inc., the global lithium-ion battery market is anticipated to reach a valuation of USD 93.1 billion by the end of 2025. Growing demand for Electric Vehicles (EVs) is expected to provide an upthrust to the market. Governments are playing a critical role in encouraging a shift from fuel to electric batteries, in order to curb emissions and safeguard the environment.

The market in Asia Pacific will post a phenomenal CAGR during the forecast period. Proliferation of consumer electronics, such as smartphones and tablets, in emerging economies is supplementing the regional growth . Some of the key companies in the market are Samsung Group, Panasonic Corp., GS Yuasa Corporation, LG Chem Ltd., and Hitachi Ltd.

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https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/lithium-ion-battery-market

Power Plant Boiler for Generating Electricity

Power plant boiler is the machine that produces steam by applying heat energy to water thus, it is mostly used in the industries that require steam for different operations. Such boilers are available in different sizes as per applications, for example, boilers in power stations and other industrial installations are larger and are connected to the point-of-use (POU) piping. Fuels such as nuclear, petroleum, coal, natural gas, and renewables are used in the boiler for power generation while subcritical, supercritical, and ultra-critical are the major boiler technologies.

Innovative Technologies to Boost Product Demand

Subcritical is estimated to dominate the boiler technology segment over the forecast period (from 2018 to 2025). The subcritical technology segment is expected to account for 74 % of the overall industry share by 2025. This growth can be credited to the reliance on coal for power generation. Moreover, easy availability and low input costs are also expected to drive the segment in the coming years. The supercritical segment is expected to witness a high CAGR during the estimated period. The technology is efficient and quite popular, particularly in China and OECD countries.

China has increased its power generation capacity using supercritical technology. The region has 23 supercritical units that provides around 16-megawatt of power. The ultra-critical technology offers high efficiency of around 50 %, which is the highest among all the boiler technologies. It is utilized in 26 operating units in countries such as Japan, Germany, Denmark, the U.S., and Netherlands. However, the segment may witness a steady growth due to higher production costs of this technology.

Market Overview

According to a report by Grand View Research, Inc., the worldwide power plant boiler market is expected to reach at USD 28.0 billion by 2025. Rising requirement for electricity owing to the rapid industrialization and urbanization, especially in developing countries, can drive the market. In addition, increased government expenditure to establish new power plants and to upgrade the existing ones will also create new growth opportunities for the market.Prominent market players include Babcock & Wilcox Enterprises, General Electric (GE), Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd., Siemens AG, and Dongfang Electric Corporation (DEC).

Most of these companies focus on R&D to develop innovative products. For instance, In 2017, Bosch industrial introduced the largest boiler of their portfolio at ESH Energy. The new double-flame tube boiler weighs up to 120 tons and has a height of six meters. It offers an output of up to 55000 kg of steam per hour and can be useful for large industrial companies and energy suppliers.

Read more:

https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/power-plant-boiler-market