E-waste Management Market by Processed Materials (Metal, Plastic, Glass, and Others), Applications (Recycling and Disposal), Waste Source Types (Consumer Electronics and Industrial Electronics), and Regions (Asia Pacific, North America, Latin America, Europe, and Middle East & Africa) - Global Industry Analysis, Growth, Share, Size, Trends, and Forecast 2022 – 2030

The global e-waste management market size was valued at USD 49,980.58 million in 2021 and is expected to surpass USD 144,560 million by 2030, expanding at a CAGR of 14.1% during the forecast period, 2022–2030. The growth of the market is attributed to the need to use the recycling materials or cost-effective metals for electronics production and growing demand for consumer electronic devices globally.

E-waste or electronic waste can be described as those electronic or electrical items that are no longer useful for active usage, simply termed as obsolete electronic products. These items are either destined for either permanent disposal or recycling through material recovery. E-waste management primarily refers to a recycling process of those discarded electronic or electrical products so that these processed materials can be reused or refurnished for further use. Over the years, a huge pile of several electrical and electronic items such as TVs, fax machines, phones, digital or video cameras, fridges, computer monitors, keyboards, printers, scanners, circuit boards, lamps, clocks, radios, calculators, washing machines, and MP3, DVD, or CD players are discarded every year after use. These discarded items are put under the recycling process to retrieve precious metals such as gold, aluminum, silver, copper, platinum, lead, and tin, which are key components or ingredients for the manufacturing of consumer electronic and IT communication gadgets. Using these processed materials, a manufacturer helps in reducing the emission of greenhouse gases and thus, aiding in mitigation of global warming crisis.

The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic posed a threat to the expansion of the market due to lack of laborer and shutdown of recycling factories, impacted by emergency lockdown. Imposition of social distancing and movement restriction by governments in a view to curb the virus spread along with the sudden disruption in the global supply chains of players in the market act as vital factors hindering the market expansion during the pandemic. On the other hand, the wide adoption of work from home (WFH) policy by several business organizations has boosted the demand for consumer electronic products such as laptop or smartphones, thereby, creating several opportunities for the market growth in the coming years. As per several reports, more than 60% of companies based in Europe have prepared plans to implement permanent policy for WFH in the near future. This situation has forced businesses to adopt massive dispose of their existing or old office electronic equipment and IT devices such as office desktop or PCs.

Market Trends, Drivers, Restraints, and Opportunities

• Increasing disposable income and high spending on buying electronic gadgets among a large portion of working people for personal assistance or household use present key factors driving the market.
• Rising demand for rare metals and components required for manufacturing of electronic items as well as high cost of these raw materials are expected to boost the market in the coming years.
• Recycling of electronic waste items help in reducing the overall carbon footprint globally, thereby, shaping a robust path for sustainable environment. This is another key driver of the market.
• Lack of successful commercialization of e-waste management especially in developing countries and insufficient funding for e-waste recycling process act as major challenges, which can hamper market expansion during the forecast period.
• Introduction of innovative electronic devices or rapid upgrade of smart household appliances drive to discard personal devices or old household items. This offers lucrative opportunities for market growth.

Scope of the Report

The report on the global e-waste management market includes an assessment of the market, trends, segments, and regional markets. Overview and dynamics have also been included in the report.

Market Segment Insights

Metal as a vital ingredient for electronic & electrical products

Based on processed materials, the global e-waste management market is divided into metal, plastic, glass, and others. The metal segment held a large market share in 2021 and is expected to expand at a rapid pace with a CAGR of 4.2% during the forecast period due to high use of metal as a vital ingredient for the manufacturing of majority of electronic and electrical devices. Moreover, the recycling process is mainly aimed to extract or retrieve more metal, which are scarcely available and the use of effective methods for restoring metal from discarded electronic products present a key advantage in the market competition. On the other hand, the plastic segment is anticipated to account for a key market share in the coming years owing to wide use of plastic for various electronic products including laptops and smartphones.

Favorable governments’ policies drive the recycling segment

In terms of applications, the market is bifurcated into recycling and disposal. The recycling segment is anticipated to register a CAGR of 3.3% during the forecast period owing to favorable governments’ policies and initiatives encouraging the development of advanced and effective recycling techniques or methods. Moreover, several key global IT players including Dell, HP, and Microsoft have largely participated by entering into collaboration with recycling companies to expand the reuse of the discarded electronic items. As the world is entering into a realm of sustainable environment, the use of sustainable products for manufacturing electronic gadgets help in reducing the carbon emission.

Consumer electronics segment to register a high CAGR

On the basis of waste source types, the global e-waste management market is segregated into consumer electronics and industrial electronics. The consumer electronics segment constituted a major market share in 2021 and is projected to register a high CAGR during the forecast period owing to massive use of electronic items for both personal and household use. Consumer electronics include various personal assistance gadgets, household smart appliances, and several IT accessories. The massive growth of both commercial and residential spaces pave a way for increasing use of smart home appliances, which present a key factor boosting the segment. On the other hand, the industrial electronics segment is anticipated to account for a key market share in the coming years owing to rapid expansion of the IT & telecom and healthcare industry. Several existing or old IT devices and medical equipment had to be dumped as these devices are required of constant upgrade and replaced with innovative tools to ensure best result or convenience for the use of consumers or patients.

North America to constitute a key market share

In terms of regions, the market is classified as Asia Pacific, North America, Latin America, Europe, and Middle East & Africa. North America is expected to constitute a key share of the market during the projected period owing to early acceptance of advanced recycle technology and wide acceptance of e-waste management solutions. Moreover, strict government regulations towards the carbon emission reduction and governments’ initiatives to companies associated with effective recycled methods for rare materials present another key dimensions of the regional market expansion. On the other hand, the market of Asia Pacific is anticipated to expand at a robust growth rate during the forecast period owing to the presence of a large number of consumers for electronic items and rising spending on smart electronic devices for personal use.

Segments

• Metal
• Plastic
• Glass
• Others

• Recycling
• Disposal

• Consumer Electronics
• Industrial Electronics

• Asia Pacific
• North America
• Latin America
• Europe
• Middle East & Africa

• Umicore AG & Co. KG
• Enviro-Hub Holdings Ltd.
• MRI E-cycle Solutions
• Capital Environment Holdings Limited
• Boliden AB
• Electronic Recyclers International, Inc.
• SEMBCORP Environmental Management
• Sims Metal Management Limited
• WM Intellectual Property Holdings, L.L.C.
• Global Electric Electronic Processing Inc.
• TRIPLE M METAL LP
• Stena Metall AB
• Tetronics (International) Limited
• Aurubis AG

Competitive Landscape

Key players competing in the global e-waste management market are Umicore AG & Co. KG; Enviro-Hub Holdings Ltd.; MRI E-cycle Solutions; Capital Environment Holdings Limited; Boliden AB; Electronic Recyclers International, Inc.; SEMBCORP Environmental Management; Sims Metal Management Limited; WM Intellectual Property Holdings, L.L.C.; Global Electric Electronic Processing Inc.; TRIPLE M METAL LP; Stena Metall AB; Tetronics (International) Limited; and Aurubis AG. To gain a competitive edge in the market, major players focus on the establishment a robust method or way to get easy access to recyclable raw materials for a long term operation.