Summary

The world market for industrial valves will grow steadily to $56 billion in 2012 up from $47 billion in 2008.  In 2012 automatic regulation and control valve sales are projected at $13.6 billion followed by ball valves at $12.4 billion. Gate and globe valve sales will exceed $9.8 billion.  Butterfly valve sales will be $5.7 billion, while plug valve sales will pass the $4.8 billion mark.  Other valve types will comprise the balance.  

In the automatic regulation and control category, China is steadily narrowing the gap.  But in 2009 purchases will still be less than in the U.S.    Japan will hold on to the third spot, with Germany  taking the fourth position based on its strong chemical industry.   Saudi Arabia makes the list of the top 15 solely on the basis of its oil and gas activities.  Russia rounds out the top five based on its expanding role in oil and gas.

 

Industrial Valves World Markets  
Country Ranking by Subject
Auto Reg. & Control

                   ($ Millions)

Country

2012
United States  2,513.57
China  2,341.46
Japan  757.79
Germany  527.05
Russia  518.55
Brazil  503.82
Canada  430.66
South Korea  349.71
United Kingdom  341.01
France  330.16
India  298.81
Italy  291.02
Mexico  275.96
Saudi Arabia  252.37
Spain  193.62

 

 

Valve companies are finding many new opportunities for their products.  The potential for valve sales for power plant scrubber systems is very large.  ITT, Tyco, Flowserve, and Weir are pursuing this application. Other applications with double-digit growth include ethanol, LNG, desalination, and biotechnology. Alternative fuel sources including oil sands, oil shale and coal liquefaction also represent promising markets.

The industry has become increasingly global.  There are a number of very large worldwide suppliers who supply many valve types and many industries.  On the other hand, there are thousands of valve companies which concentrate on narrow applications or narrow geographies or both.  Still others make just one or a few types of very specialized valves.

Further consolidation of the industry will continue, driven by customer needs. The large global power producers, semiconductor manufacturers, and pharmaceutical companies, prefer to deal with worldwide suppliers and to standardize on the same valve types in a plant in Taiwan and one in Puerto Rico .