GCC Industrial Waste Management Market

GCC Industrial Waste Management Market Analysis

The GCC Industrial Waste Management Market size is estimated at USD 7.74 billion in 2025, and is expected to reach USD 10.03 billion by 2030, at a CAGR of 5.32% during the forecast period (2025-2030).

• In the past decade, Gulf Cooperation Council countries have experienced rapid population growth, urbanization, and a significant increase in standard of life. This has led to increased waste generation and calls for efficient practices in environmental sustainability. Almost all Gulf Cooperation Council countries have adopted waste to energy as their most recent trend. In the past, to address waste management issues, specific recycling centers and solid waste treatment plants have been set up mainly in the United Arab Emirates.
• The United Arab Emirates became a member of the Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes (1990) and their disposal. A decision regulating the transit and export of dangerous waste goods across the United Arab Emirates border has been adopted by the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment in the UA. In Saudi Arabia, the major portion of collected waste ends up untreated in landfills. The landfill requirement is very high at about 28 million m3 per year.
• The Saudi Green and Middle East Green initiatives is expected to reduce carbon emissions in the region by 60% by 2030 and divert 85% of industrial waste from landfills by 2035. Around 95,002 plants and factories across the KSA manufacture various products in different sectors. Rising investments in manufacturing factories are driving the growth of industrial waste generation in KSA, supported by low-cost loans provided by SIDF for establishing an industrial plant. The petrochemical sector is one of the largest sectors in KSA and a major contributor to industrial waste, and it is expected to continue to grow.

GCC Industrial Waste Management Market Trends

Saudi Arabia is Expected to Witness a Significant Growth in the Forecasting Period

• Saudi Arabia has been focusing on environmental sustainability, and there are regulations in place to manage industrial waste. The government's commitment to addressing environmental challenges is likely to drive advancements in waste management practices. Government enforcement requires all industrial facilities to contract with qualified industrial waste management companies to collect and treat their generated waste. As part of Saudi Vision 2030, the National Center for Waste Management (NCWM) was established to unify the waste sector roles, standards, and requirements and streamline incentives to attract investments to the sector.
• 85% of industrial waste in KSA is targeted to be excluded from landfills by 2035, where the current exclusion from landfills is less than 50%. The National Industrial Development and Logistics Program aims to transform the Kingdom into a leading industrial powerhouse and a global logistics hub. Multiple large-scale industrial cities are under construction in Saudi Arabia.
• Land for lease starts from USD 0.26 per sqm/year. HRDF covers 30-50% of Saudi employees' monthly salaries (an additional 10% for females) for two years, provided that it does not exceed USD 4,000. 100% foreign direct ownership allowed. A fully competitive investment environment is enforced in KSA at the highest regulatory and legal levels.

Construction and Demolition Segment Occupying the Largest Market Share

• Due to the highly variable nature of demolition, construction, and excavation waste, each plant CDE design is built as per the specific requirements of the project. For construction and demolition waste, an individual approach is necessary for each recycling plant to different levels of contamination, fines content, and variations in input material: excavation waste, railway ballast, etc. The Gulf Cooperation Countries (GCC) produce around 120 million tons of waste annually, with 55% of that being construction and demolition (C&D) waste. It's about 1.2 to 2.7 kg per capita daily.
• The construction and demolition wastes account for 42% of the total weight of the non-hazardous solid wastes generated in Abu Dhabi. Building materials, such as insulation, nails, electrical wire, and rebar, as well as waste arising from the preparation of the site, such as dredging materials, tree stumps, and rubble, shall be included. The construction and development activities and associated C&D waste production may continue to rise in the region. Hence, if not managed properly, the dumping of C&D may become uncontrolled. This will not only cause a negative environmental impact on soil, water, air, and the surrounding ecosystem but also result in the depletion of finite resources.
• The Abu Dhabi Waste Management Center (Tadweer) opened a new facility to recycle construction and demolition waste in Ghayathi in the Emirate’s Al Dhafra region. The new facility, located close to the Ruwais oil fields and the United Arab EmiratesSaudi Arabia border, could help ease the pressure on the Al Dhafra landfill, which is expected to receive construction and demolition waste in the range of 60,00070,000 metric tons per month, with an average daily flow of 1,500,000 metric tons. The opening of the Ghayati recycling plant is in line with Abu Dhabi's strategic plan to establish a world-class waste management system and will place the United Arab Emirates at the forefront of innovation when it comes to recycling.

GCC Industrial Waste Management Industry Overview

The North American industrial waste management market is highly competitive, with several players focusing on innovative technologies to recycle and reuse waste generated in different sectors and households around the world. There are also several startups coming up in the industry that are continuously focusing on waste reduction following the Zero Waste - 3R (Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle) philosophy. Averda, Blue LLC, SEPCO Environment, BEEAH Group, and Wasco are among the others.

GCC Industrial Waste Management Market Leaders

GCC Industrial Waste Management Market News

• November 2023: Veolia worked alongside the Sultanate of Oman and its partner TotalEnergies to promote this transition to clean, renewable energy, with the inauguration of the largest solar power plant on a desalination plant in Oman. This initiative is part of the Group's ongoing efforts to decarbonize its activities and support its customers' carbon neutrality objectives. The Sultanate of Oman is fully fulfilling its ambitious target to generate electricity from renewable sources by 2030, thanks to the production of local and low-carbon energy.
• November 2023: Averda, the leading end-to-end waste management and recycling company in emerging markets, and King Abdullah University of Science of Technology (KAUST), a graduate research university in Saudi Arabia, announced the signing of a new contract for a waste management facility and services that will provide sustainable waste management solutions for the University, with zero-waste goals projected by 2025. Averda will manage all aspects of solid and hazardous waste, including recycling, sorting, waste transfer, and disposal.