Market Trends of Dolomite Powder Industry
Steel Making Industry to Dominate the Market Demand
The dolomite powder is mainly used as slag flux in the manufacturing of steel and iron products. Calcium and magnesium dolomite powder is mostly used in the steel and iron manufacturing process.
Asia-Pacific is the largest iron and steel manufacturer, with China and India being the largest markets. In 2022, the steel production capacities of India and China increased by 4.5 billion tons and 3.3 billion tons, respectively.
In 2022, the steel production capacity in India increased by 5.5% due to increasing demand from construction and infrastructure industries. Furthermore, in 2022, crude steel production reached 124.5 million tons at a growth rate of 5.8% as compared to 117.63 million tons produced in 2021. The growth in the Indian steel sector has been driven by the domestic availability of raw materials and cost-effective labor.
In North America, total crude steel production decreased by about 5.5% in 2022, mainly driven by the fall in production in the United States and Canada by 5.9% and 7.9%, respectively. However, Mexico's steel production decreased at a slower rate by 1.6%.
In the European Union, steel production fell by 10.5% in 2022. Amongst the largest steel producers of the European Union, steel production contracted by 19.2% in Spain, 13.1% in France, and 11.9% in Italy during the year. European steel makers were heavily affected due to the rise in energy prices in 2022 as an impact of the Russia-Ukraine war.
The demand for dolomite powder from the segment is likely to grow moderately, owing to the temporary slowdown of the steel industry during the forecast period.
Asia-Pacific to Dominate the Market
- The Asia-Pacific region is expected to dominate the market for dolomite powder during the forecast period. China, India, Japan, and South Korea are the region's largest markets for dolomite powder.
- China is the largest crude steel manufacturer in the region. In 2022, the total crude steel production reached 1.02 billion tons. The country has some of the world's largest steel manufacturers, such as China Baowu Group, Shagang Group, and Shandong Steel Group.
- The construction sector in the Asia-Pacific region is the largest in the world. It is increasing at a healthy rate, owing to the rising population, increase in middle-class income and urbanization. The highest growth for housing is expected to be registered in the Asia-Pacific region, owing to the expanding housing construction markets in China and India. The increase in construction activities in the country is likely to increase cement usage, thereby driving the demand for dolomite powder in the coming years.
- India is the second-largest producer of cement in the world. In FY2022, cement production in India is expected to increase by 12% year-on-year, driven by rural housing demand and the government's strong focus on infrastructure development. Moreover, several companies are expanding cement production capacity in the country. For instance, in June 2022, UltraTech Cement approved USD 1.65 billion capital expenditure to increase capacity by 22.6 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) through brownfield and greenfield projects.
- Overall, with the demand increasing from various end-user industries in the region, the Asia-Pacific market for dolomite powder is projected to dominate the global market.
