Australia titanium dioxide market

Definition of Market/Industry:

Titanium dioxide is also called as titanium (IV) oxide with chemical formula TiO. It has a wide range of application in paints, food coloring, and sunscreen products. It occurs in nature as a minerals rutile and anatase and is the ninth most chemical element found in the earth's crust. This metal is commonly found in animal and plant and combine with oxygen to form titanium oxides which are mainly found in waste, sands, dust, and soils. It has a range of application such as paints &coatings, cosmetics, soaps, as a water treatment agents, food colorants, and automotive products.

In 2018, Australia titanium dioxide market was valued at US$ 96.2 million, in terms of revenue and 60.0 kilo tons in terms of volume.

Drivers

Rising application of titanium dioxide across paints, paper, dyes, and plastic is expected to propel the market growth over the forecast period. Moreover, increasing the disposable income of people in the country is expected to raise the demand for consumer product such as personal care, automobiles, and household product. Aforementioned factors are projected to fuel the growth of Australia titanium dioxide market in the near future.

Rising installation of solar panel in the country as titanium dioxide find application in the solar panel is projected to boost the market growth. According to the Solar Feeds, in 2018, 2 million households in Australia installed rooftop solar panels. It means that one in every five households now have solar power to bring down their electricity bills. If this rate of solar installations remains, the country will reach 50% renewable capacity in 2025.

Figure 1. Australia Titanium Dioxide Market Share (%), By Region, 2018

Among region, Western Australia region dominated the Australia titanium dioxide market in 2018, accounting for 41.9% share in terms of value, followed by Victoria and New South Wales, respectively.

Market Restraints

The slowdown of the economy in the country is projected to hinder the market growth of Australia titanium dioxide. According to the World Economic Outlook, The International Monetary Fund predicts that Australia's economy will weaken to 1.7 percent growth in 2019, down a full percentage point from 2.7 percent in 2018. Hence, the slowdown of the Australia economy in the recent few years is expected to restrict market growth over the forecast period.

Increasing usage of substitute of titanium dioxide as silica due to its excellent surface passivation property is expected to hinder the market growth of titanium dioxide. The silica glass is now being increasingly embedded with silicon solar cells which is raising the demand for demand silica due to excellent property over titanium dioxide. This factor is expected to restrain the market growth of the titanium dioxide.

Market Opportunities

Increasing the cosmetic and personal care product industry in Australia is projected to propel the market growth of titanium dioxide. According to the report published by the International Monetary Fund in September 2016, in 2015, Australia’s total personal care and the cosmetics market is estimated at US$ 3.4 billion. Imports satisfy over 70% of the domestic market with the U.S. holding the largest share at 22%.

Increasing adoption of advanced technology for the production of titanium dioxide is expected to foster market growth over the forecast period. For example, traditionally sulfate process was used to extract titanium dioxide from its ores but now it has been gradually replaced by chloride process because this process generates a lesser amount of waste, easy recovery, and also has the possibility of chlorine recycling. Hence, advancements in technology are expected to fuel the market growth.

Figure 2. Australia Titanium Dioxide Market – Opportunity Analysis

Market Trends/Key Takeaways

An increasing number of partnerships among major players in Australia to meet the rising demand for titanium dioxide is expected to fuel the market growth over the forecast period. For instance, in October 2018, DKSH and Australian stock listed resources company TNG have signed a term sheet encompassing the full distribution on a global and exclusive basis for TNG’s titanium dioxide (TiO2) production as TiO2 is the most used white pigment worldwide.

The presence of the biggest deposits of titanium mineral in Australia is expected to fuel the market growth of the titanium dioxide. For example, according to Australia's peak research organization, the CSIRO, Australia has the biggest deposits of ilmenite and rutile – titanium's base minerals - in the world. At present, 95 percent of the mineral sand mined is used in an oxide form, the pure white color crucial in products from paint to cosmetics.

Figure 3. Australia Titanium Dioxide Market- Value Chain Analysis

Based on application, Australia titanium dioxide market is segmented into dyes & paints, plastics & rubbers, paper, pure titanium metals & welding rods, and others. In 2018, dyes & paints accounted for largest revenue share of 63.2%, followed by plastics & rubbers and paper segment, respectively.

Figure 4. Australia Titanium Dioxide Market Share (%), By Application, 2018

Competitive Section:

Company Names 

Players active in the market are Tronox Limited, Iluka Resource Limited, and Cristal Australia Pty Ltd

Few Recent Developments

Tronox Limited

• In April 2019, Tronox Limited’s US$ 2.0 billion acquisition of titanium dioxide business. Cristal operates eight TiO2 manufacturing plants in Australia, Brazil, China, France, Saudi Arabia, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Cristal also operates mines in Australia and Brazil, and a research and development center and a titanium metal powder plant in the United States.
• In 2015, the company started production at its Fairbreeze mine in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. The mine is expected to produce titanium dioxide mineral sands such as ilmenite, rutile, and zircon.