NEWS RELEASE                                                                                         September 2017

FGD Purchases of $19 billion are Being Determined by Only a Few Thousand People

FGD consumables include lime, limestone, water treatment chemicals, filtration cartridges and belts, membranes, dust bags, seals, balls for ball mills, general performance analyzers and similar items.  Minor replacements include nozzles, valves, general performance pumps, and mist eliminators.  Repairs are needed for high performance pumps, dampers, high performance valves, scrubber linings, continuous emissions monitoring systems, fans and high-performance analyzers. 

Many FGD systems in the U.S., Japan and Europe were installed in the 1980s.  These systems are being updated with extensive automation and in some cases new scrubber vessels. New pumps and fans are also being installed.  In part this is due to end of life issues but often upgrades are required to meet tougher regulations.

The yearly FGD capacity additions have peaked both quantitatively and in terms of percent increases. In the 1980s the new yearly additions were 20,000 MW per year but in the early 1980s this represented as much as 20 percent of the installed capacity.  At the peak in 2005 the yearly additions were 90,000 MW but only represented 10 percent of the total installed capacity.  Now orders for new systems have dropped to 60,000 MW per year but this represents only 4 percent of the installed capacity.

What this means is a big change in the ratio between markets for new systems and the purchases for existing systems.  The market for new systems in 2018 will only be $3 billion while the purchases for existing systems will be $16 billion. Most of the new purchases will be in a few Asian countries.  The total $19 billion market will be dominated by relatively few end users and suppliers according to the latest forecast in N027 FGD Market and Strategies.

Many of the decisions are increasingly being made by OEMS, and EPCs.  Let’s take the example of flow control components such as pumps, valves, fans, and dampers. For new systems the end user will not often directly purchase these components.  Large FGD system suppliers will typically purchase or specify the specific brand and product.

FGD system suppliers are making a big effort to serve their existing customers with O&M services which include component replacement.  In the future third party O&M will become commonplace as explained in N031 Industrial IoT and Remote O&M.

The remote monitoring of every valve, pump, fan and damper will generate unique knowledge for the corporate utility personnel and OEMs.  As a result, a few thousand people in 31 corporations will make more than 70 percent of the purchase decisions for high performance FGD components.

The market report provides forecasted purchases by each of the large operators and OEMS.  Detailed profiles of the FGD OEMS are also provided.  Detailed profiles of the operators are found in 42EI Utility Tracking System which also tracks individual projects on a weekly basis.

For more information click on the markets click on  N027 FGD Market and Strategies   or contact Bob Mcilvaine at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.   847-784-0012 ext 112