Saudi Arabia Plastic Recycling Market

Saudi Arabia Plastic Recycling Market Size & Insights

Saudi Arabia Plastic Recycling Market size is project to add an incremental market revenues of over USD 300 million between 2025 and 2032 driven by majorly driven by increasing number of government initiatives to support the recycling of plastics, rapid increase in plastic waste generation and rising awareness amongst consumers about the hazard posed by massive dumping of plastics.

Saudi Arabia Plastic Recycling Market Overview

Plastic recycling refers to the process of recovering waste plastic or scrap and reprocessing the material into a new useful Material Type. As compared to the lucrative recycling of metal, the plastic polymers are often more challenging as it has a low density and low value. Every year, more than 420 million tons of plastics are manufactured globally. There are basically two stages of the recycling process, including sorting, which is mostly done automatically with a manual sort to make sure all contaminants are removed, and then plastic material is shredded into flakes.

Saudi Arabia Plastic Recycling Market Drivers

Increasing Number of Government Initiatives Supporting Plastic Recycling

Plastic waste generation across Saudi Arabia has increased significantly in the recent years owing to rising population growth rates and growing industrialization in the country. Waste generation is contributing towards environmental degradation in the country since plastic hundreds of years to decompose and can harm wildlife and ecosystem, as per recent estimates, financial impact environmental degradation caused by solid waste in Saudi Arabia was estimated at USD 1.3 billion in 2021. To reduce plastic generation, Saudi Arabia government is planning to invest USD 6.4 billion in waste recycling to shift towards more sustainable waste management systems, which is creating growth opportunities for Saudi Arabia plastic recycling market.

The Saudi government introduced Saudi Green initiative under Saudi Vision 2030 in 2021. They aimed to reduce carbon emissions, to increase renewable energy capacity, to reduce methane emissions, to protect land and sea and to decrease plastic pollution. The program planned to reduce carbon emission by more than 278 mtpa by 2030 and net zero emissions by 2060. SGI committed to increase the domestic renewable energy capacity by 50% and to cut global methane emissions by 30% by 2030. It further aims to plant 10 billion trees and to rehabilitate 40 million hectares of land. For instance, Saudi Arabia planted 18 million trees across the Saudi Arabia. As a part of SGI initiatives, Saudi Arabia aimed to increase protected area of more than 30% of total area and to protect terrestrial, costal and marine area by 20% by 2030.

Board of Directors of the Saudi Standards, Metrology and Quality Organization (SASO) approved the formation of a working group with the representatives of the Ministry of Environment, Water, Agriculture. This community is emphasizing on increasing the recycling activities in Saudi Arabia in accordance with modern technologies, best international practices, and mechanisms, which will positively impact the market. Furthermore, the rising level of pollution caused due to the dumping of used plastics in water bodies and the shortage in the landfill areas are further fuelling the market growth. The continuous technological advancement in plastic recycling technologies is further opening new doors for the growth of the market. In 2020, SABIC introduced a sustainable packaging solution by using mono web TF-BOPE film for frozen food applications. This 100% recyclable film is made with the help of Ticinoplast and Plastchim-T film suppliers and the packaging machine manufacturer Syntegon Technology. This film provides numerous benefits such as high yield, better printability, cost-saving opportunities, and reduced consumption of plastic materials.

Rapid Increase in Plastic Waste Generation

Increasing emphasis on infrastructural development, including the construction of smart cities and expansion in the food & beverage sector, are some other propelling the market growth. Moreover, several companies are introducing innovative packaging solutions to cater to this market. For example, SABIC, a chemical manufacturing company, launched a new sustainable packaging solution that comprises polyethylene grade & advanced film Material Typeion technology for frozen food packaging applications.

Saudi Investment Recycling Co. and National Center for Waste Management aimed to change waste management in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. They planned to divert 94% of waste produced away from landfills in Riyadh and to compost more than 1.3 million tons of biodegradable waste. The waste management model will be executed across the Saudi Arabia by 2030 and expected to reduce 4.1 mtpa of carbon emissions.

Challenges Faced by Saudi Arabia Plastic Recycling Market Players

Lack of proper infrastructure and awareness related to the recycling of plastics are certain factors that are hampering the growth of the market. In addition, lack of presence of adequate infrastructure for the collection of waste, sorting, and recycling of plastics in the country is further hindering the market growth.

Saudi Arabia Plastic Recycling Market Segment Analysis

Saudi Arabia Plastic Recycling Market Material Type Insights

Based on the Material Type, the Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET) segment is projected to dominate the market during the forecast period. The increasing utilization of PET in various industries such as construction, packaging, and textile industries due to their lower cost is one of the biggest factors that is contributing to the growth of the segment in the market. The PET provides numerous exceptional benefits such as high stiffness & strength, lightweight, easy & effective transportation, excellent electrical insulating properties, and safe for contact with food & beverages as approved by FDA, which is further attracting customers towards the market.

Moreover, various institutions and the government is emphasizing on developing various innovative recycling technologies. For instance, in 2019, a team of researchers from King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Saudi Arabia, converted the recycled polyethylene terephthalate (PET) into porous membranes for purification & filtration applications within the chemical industry to separate the liquids from the molecules.

Saudi Arabia Plastic Recycling Market Application Insights

On the basis of the application, the packaging segment is dominating the market during the forecast period. The accelerating adoption of recycled plastics, especially for the packaging of food & beverages, followed by the strong demand in the diversified business industries are the two significant factors that are boosting the growth of the segment.

In addition to this, the increasing demand for packaging during to the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic is driven by the significant shift in the consumer’s preference towards the use of plastic-wrapped food that meets the specific hygiene conditions. Various players in Saudi Arabia are emphasizing on developing innovative packaging solutions to cater to the changing demand of the end-users. For instance, Aptar developed the first certified recycled plastic beauty packaging, which is certified by the International Sustainability and Carbon Certification (ISCC) and is utilized for the relaunch of EVERCALM global protection day cream and REN clean moisturizer. The revolutionary type of recycled plastic resin is supplied by SABIC. By this partnership, the company was held responsible for converting the low-grade, post-consumer plastic waste and is approved and audited by the ISCC.

Saudi Arabia Plastic Recycling Market Major Players & Competitive Landscape

Several leading companies are Napco National, Saudi Investment Recycling Company, Arab Recycling Company, Nesma Recycling Co. Ltd an many more

Saudi Arabia Plastic Recycling Market News

• • In 2019, Napco National, one of the largest producer of petrochemical packaging solutions at the 14th Gulf Petrochemicals and Chemicals Association (GPCA) Forum formed a strategic alliance with the petrochemical producers to highlight the importance of reducing the negative environmental impact of plastic waste in the petrochemical industry.

Saudi Arabia Plastic Recycling Market Scope of the Report

Saudi Arabia Plastic Recycling Market Research Report Segmentation

The Saudi Arabia Plastic Recycling market has been segmented on the basis of Product Type, Application. Based on Material Type, the market is segmented into Polyethylene Terephthalate, Polypropylene, Polystyrene, Polyvinyl Chloride, Polyethylene, and Others. Based on Application, the market is segmented into packaging, building & construction, textile, automotive and others.

Saudi Arabia Plastic Recycling Market by Material Type

• • Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET)
  • Polypropylene (PP)
  • Polystyrene (PS)
  • Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC)
  • Polyethylene
  • Others

Saudi Arabia Plastic Recycling Market by Application

• • Packaging
  • Building & Construction
  • Textile
  • Automotive
  • Others

Saudi Arabia Plastic Recycling Market Leading players

• • Napco National
  • Saudi Investment Recycling Company
  • Arab Recycling Company
  • Nesma Recycling Co. Ltd