Waste-to-Energy Market – Global Industry Size, Share, Trends, Opportunity, and Forecast, Segmented By Technology (Thermochemical, Biochemical), By Waste Type (Municipal Solid Waste, Process Waste, Agricultural waste, and Others), By Application (Electricity, Heat), By Region and Competition 2021-2031F

Forecast Period	2027-2031
Market Size (2025)	USD 37.31 Billion
CAGR (2026-2031)	7.95%
Fastest Growing Segment	Electricity
Largest Market	North America
Market Size (2031)	USD 59.04 Billion

Market Overview

The Global Waste-to-Energy Market will grow from USD 37.31 Billion in 2025 to USD 59.04 Billion by 2031 at a 7.95% CAGR. Waste-to-Energy functions as a critical waste management process involving the generation of electricity or heat through the thermal or biological treatment of waste materials. The primary drivers propelling this market include the escalating volume of municipal solid waste driven by rapid urbanization and the urgent necessity to minimize landfill reliance to mitigate methane emissions. These factors are further reinforced by stringent government mandates aiming to divert refuse from landfills while simultaneously contributing to renewable energy targets and circular economy frameworks.

According to the Confederation of European Waste-to-Energy Plants, in 2024, the business climate index for plant operators rose to 91.7 points, reflecting a highly optimistic industry sentiment and robust market activity. Despite this positive outlook, a significant challenge impeding broader market expansion is the substantial capital expenditure required for constructing and maintaining these complex facilities. High initial investment costs combined with rigorous environmental compliance standards can create financial barriers that delay project implementation in price-sensitive regions.

Key Market Drivers

Rising Global Urbanization and Municipal Waste Surge act as the primary catalyst for the Global Waste-to-Energy Market by creating an urgent need for efficient disposal infrastructure. As population density increases in metropolitan areas, the sheer volume of refuse overwhelms traditional disposal methods, necessitating advanced thermal and biological treatment solutions to drastically reduce waste volume. This escalation creates an immediate requirement for facilities capable of processing vast quantities of feedstock to prevent environmental degradation. According to the United Nations Environment Programme, February 2024, in the 'Global Waste Management Outlook 2024' report, municipal solid waste generation is predicted to grow from 2.1 billion tonnes in 2023 to 3.8 billion tonnes by 2050. This projected trajectory underscores the critical necessity for expanding energy recovery capacities to convert this expanding waste stream into a valuable resource.

The Increasing Demand for Renewable and Alternative Energy Sources further accelerates market adoption, as nations seek to diversify their energy mix and reduce dependence on fossil fuels. Waste-to-energy plants serve a dual purpose by treating waste while simultaneously feeding baseload power and heat into local grids, a function that becomes increasingly valuable during periods of volatile energy prices. According to Veolia, February 2024, in the '2023 Annual Results' report, revenue from the company's energy business grew by 19.9% to €12.3 billion, driven significantly by high energy prices and the demand for energy efficiency and flexibility. The scale of contribution from these biological and thermal sources remains substantial across the wider energy landscape. According to the World Bioenergy Association, in 2024, bioenergy contributed 697 TWh to global renewable electricity generation in the preceding year, highlighting the sector's pivotal role in the renewable transition.

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Key Market Challenges

The substantial capital expenditure required for developing and maintaining Waste-to-Energy infrastructure acts as a formidable barrier to global market expansion. These facilities necessitate immense upfront funding to ensure they meet safety protocols and operational efficiency standards. Consequently, the high financial entry point deters investors and prolongs the timeline for project approval, particularly in price-sensitive regions where securing long-term financing is difficult. This capital intensity directly restricts the speed at which new capacity can be brought online to match increasing waste volumes.

Furthermore, the cost of adhering to strict environmental mandates often stalls the integration of essential technologies required for future growth. Financial constraints frequently delay the deployment of compliance-focused upgrades, leaving projects in a state of uncertainty. According to the European Suppliers of Waste-to-Energy Technology, in 2024, only 14% of plant operators had taken decisive steps toward implementing carbon capture projects despite widespread industry discussion. This low implementation rate illustrates how high investment costs create a bottleneck, preventing the industry from rapidly adopting the infrastructure needed to scale operations and meet broader market demands.

Key Market Trends

The Integration of Carbon Capture, Utilization, and Storage (CCUS) Technologies is fundamentally reshaping the sector by transforming facilities from simple waste treatment plants into active carbon management hubs. Operators are increasingly retrofitting infrastructure to capture emissions at the source, thereby securing long-term viability amidst tightening net-zero regulations and potential carbon tax liabilities. This technological evolution allows facilities to potentially achieve carbon-negative status by permanently sequestering biogenic CO2, effectively decoupling waste processing from atmospheric emissions. According to Rigzone, September 2024, in the 'Alberta Invests $2MM in Waste-to-Energy Carbon Capture Facility' article, the Alberta government invested $2.04 million in a design study for Varme Energy's waste-to-energy facility, which is projected to capture and store approximately 185,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide annually, illustrating the growing financial commitment to this decarbonization pathway.

Simultaneously, the Growing Production of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) from Waste Feedstocks represents a strategic pivot from generating baseload electricity toward producing high-value liquid fuels. As the aviation industry faces stringent decarbonization mandates, waste-to-energy developers are leveraging advanced gasification and synthesis technologies to convert municipal solid waste into drop-in jet fuels. This shift addresses the critical shortage of low-carbon feedstocks while offering a higher revenue potential than traditional power sales, effectively positioning waste as a crucial component of the future transport energy mix. According to the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, April 2024, in the 'Garbage Could Replace a Quarter of Petroleum-Based Jet Fuel Every Year' feature, waste-to-fuel refineries in the United States could utilize local waste streams to produce 3 to 5 billion gallons of sustainable aviation fuel annually, highlighting the immense capacity of waste resources to decarbonize the aviation sector.

Segmental Insights

Based on authoritative market research, the Electricity segment is identified as the fastest-growing category within the Global Waste-to-Energy Market. This accelerated expansion is primarily driven by rapid urbanization and the intensifying global demand for renewable baseload power, particularly in emerging economies where municipal waste volumes are surging. Unlike heat generation, which requires specific district infrastructure, electricity offers universal grid compatibility, making it the preferred solution for nations aiming to simultaneously reduce landfill dependence and diversify energy supplies. Furthermore, regulatory frameworks enforcing strict methane reduction targets compel governments to prioritize waste-to-electricity projects over traditional disposal methods.

Regional Insights

North America maintains a dominant position in the global waste-to-energy market due to established infrastructure and stringent waste management policies. The region handles high levels of municipal solid waste, prompting governments to prioritize energy recovery over landfill disposal. Agencies such as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency enforce regulations that support the conversion of refuse into renewable power to lower greenhouse gas emissions. These regulatory measures, combined with substantial public and private investment in thermal treatment facilities, ensure North America remains the leading contributor to global market revenue.

Recent Developments

• In November 2024, Veolia forged a 25-year strategic partnership with a public waste management authority to construct and operate a new waste-to-energy plant in France. The project, valued at approximately €440 million, aims to treat non-recyclable household waste while generating electricity and heat for the local community. The facility is designed to incorporate artificial intelligence to optimize combustion efficiency and energy recovery, ensuring high performance. This collaboration underscores the company's strategy to enhance energy autonomy and reduce the environmental footprint of waste treatment through long-term infrastructure investments and innovative technological integration.
• In September 2024, Babcock & Wilcox announced that it was awarded a contract to conduct front-end engineering and design for a planned waste-to-energy facility with carbon capture and sequestration in Alberta, Canada. The company collaborated with Varme Energy Inc. to design the plant's waste-fired boiler, combustion grate, and emissions control technologies. This project represents Canada's first waste-to-energy facility to integrate carbon capture, aiming to process up to 200,000 tons of waste annually. The partnership focuses on reducing greenhouse gas emissions and diverting waste from landfills through advanced engineering solutions, producing clean energy for the region.
• In August 2024, Valmet delivered its first waste-to-energy boiler to Southeast Asia for a project with Thang Long Energy Environment Joint Stock Company in Vietnam. The delivery included a circulating fluidized bed boiler and a flue gas cleaning system designed to support the region's transition to a green economy. This technology enables the efficient thermal treatment of waste to generate reliable energy while complying with strict environmental emission standards. The project highlighted the company's strategic expansion into new geographical markets and its continued commitment to providing advanced sustainable energy solutions for the global waste management sector.
• In March 2024, Hitachi Zosen Inova partnered with enfinium to install the United Kingdom's first carbon capture pilot plant at a waste-to-energy facility. The collaboration involved deploying a mobile, containerized unit at the Ferrybridge 1 site in West Yorkshire to capture carbon dioxide emissions from daily operations. This project utilized proprietary amine-scrubbing technology to demonstrate the feasibility of commercial-scale carbon capture within the sector. The initiative marked a significant step in decarbonizing the industry, allowing the companies to test different solvents and collect performance data to support future large-scale deployment across fleet operations.

Key Market Players

• Veolia Environnement SA
• Hitachi Zosen Corporation
• Wheelabrator Technologies Holdings Inc.
• Babcock & Wilcox Enterprises, Inc.
• Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd
• Waste Management Inc.
• Covanta Holding Corp.
• China Everbright Group

By Technology	By Waste Type	By Application	By Region
Thermochemical Biochemical	Municipal Solid Waste Process Waste Agricultural waste and Others	Electricity Heat	North America Europe Asia Pacific South America Middle East & Africa

Report Scope:

In this report, the Global Waste-to-Energy Market has been segmented into the following categories, in addition to the industry trends which have also been detailed below:

• Waste-to-Energy Market, By Technology:

• Thermochemical
• Biochemical

• Waste-to-Energy Market, By Waste Type:

• Municipal Solid Waste
• Process Waste
• Agricultural waste
• and Others

• Waste-to-Energy Market, By Application:

• Electricity
• Heat

• Waste-to-Energy Market, By Region:

• North America
• United States
• Canada
• Mexico
• Europe
• France
• United Kingdom
• Italy
• Germany
• Spain
• Asia Pacific
• China
• India
• Japan
• Australia
• South Korea
• South America
• Brazil
• Argentina
• Colombia
• Middle East & Africa
• South Africa
• Saudi Arabia
• UAE