Water Purifier Market In India to grow at 11% till 2023

The water purifier market is expected to expand at a CAGR of more than 11 per cent by 2023. The increasing pollution in the country and lack of fresh water supply by municipalities has driven the demand for water purifiers.

Definition / Scope
Market Overview
Top Market Opportunities
Market Drivers
Market Restraints
Industry Challenges
Technology Trends
Pricing Trends
Regulatory Trends
Market Size and Forecast
Market Outlook
Distribution Chain Analysis
Competitive Landscape
Competitive Factors
Key Market Players
Strategic Conclusion
References
Appendix

Definition / Scope

Water purifiers are equipment that removes harmful gases and chemicals, bacteria, biological contaminants, fungi and other such impurities from contaminated water. The different types of water purifiers are described below:

Reverse Osmosis (RO)

This is the most widely used water purifier that uses membrane technology to remove dissolved solids and metal particles like lead and arsenic. This purifier also improves the taste and odour of water.

Ultra Filtration (UF)

UV purifies water similar to RO, the only difference being UV uses membrane with bigger pores. This purifier is ideal for the places where presence of chemical contamination is low.

Ultra violet (UV)

This purifier uses ultra-violet light to kill all germs like bacteria, microbes, cysts, etc. It is a simple method that destroys around 99.99 per cent of the harmful organisms in water.

Activated Carbon Water Purifier

This water purifier uses activated carbon that removes most water borne disease causing pesticide and heavy metals. This purifier does not require electricity for operation and changes the taste and odor of water.

Candle Filter Purifier

This is the simplest form of filter that consists of either one or two candle filters that are capable of trapping visible impurities.

Market Overview

India has the highest number of people in the world without access to safe water. At least 5 per cent of its 1.25 billion people, are without access to clean water. The growing population, industry development and environment degradation are making the water polluted.

The water borne diseases like diarrhoea, jaundice and cholera are rising. According to the recent statistics published by the World Bank, over 75 per cent of the communicable diseases in India are water related.

Boiling water was common practice in several Indian households to kill the germs of the water. However, this method is not enough to remove chemicals and cysts present in the water. Realizing the need for water purifiers of health conscious consumers, companies like KENT, HUL, Tata, Eureka, LG, Bajaj etc. have entered this market and have launched various brands of water purifiers.

The various water purifier technologies available in the India market are water softener, gravity purifier, sediment purifier, ultraviolet purifier and reverse osmosis purifier. Among these, RO and UV technologies are expected to witness rise in demand as consumers become mindful of their excellent water purification technologies.

The different types of water purifier in India are as below:

RO Water Purifier

RO is one of the most popular water purifier in India. It is so popular that the term ‘RO’ is used interchangeably with water purifier. RO purifiers not only removes bacteria and viruses but also removes harmful dissolved impurities. Example includes Livpure Pep Plus RO Water Purifier, Kent Grand Plus RO+ Water Purifier, Eureka Forbes Aquaguard Smart RO+, etc.

UV Water Purifier

This type of water purifier is used in India for purification of tap and municipal corporation’s water. Example includes Kent Maxx, Eureka Forbes Aquaguard Reviva, etc.

Gravity Water Purifier

It is cost effective and non-electric solution for safe water. The gravity purifier is expected to witness a steady growth as the rural areas of India will incline towards using this technology.Example includes Kent Gold+, Kent Smart, etc.

Water Softener

Water softener is used in India to convert hard water into soft water by exchanging hard salts of calcium and magnesium with sodium using an ion exchange process. Examples include Kent Autosoft, Automatic Whole House Jumbo Water Softener, etc.

Top Market Opportunities

RO based water purifier is the fastest growing segment of the water purifier market as RO purifies the water to the maximum level. Analysts have estimated that the RO purifier technology segment will increase at a CAGR of 18.2 per cent by the end of 2024.
The per capita renewable internal fresh water accessibility is just 1,184 cubic meters in India, which is quite low in comparison to global average of cubic meters. This number is expected to fall as the population and urbanization increases. This makes water purifiers a necessity.
People have to travel across the length and breadth of cities and it is not possible to get access to purified water every where. The packaged drinking water costs around US$ 0.3 to 0.4 per litre. This has increased the demand for point-of-use water dispensers in the market.
Water related diseases are the most common causes of death in India. Deaths due to water borne diseases are nearly 80 per cent. Over the past five years to 2017, water borne diseases like diarrhea, cholera, typhoid and viral hepatitis took lives of around 10,738 people in India. Diarrhea remains the most prevalent water related disease causing about 60 per cent of all deaths.

Market Drivers

Rising health concerns

The growing awareness about the water related diseases has driven the demand for water purifiers in India. Growing number of consumers are realizing the benefits of consuming cleaner water. Further, water purifier marketers are coming with marketing strategies as awareness campaign to make people aware about the different purifiers.

Availability of water purifiers at various prices

In order to penetrate the market, manufacturers are coming up with affordable water purifiers. The price of water purifiers range from US$ 7 to US$ 280. Additionally, the quality of water purifier is ensured with third party certified goods matching the international standards.

Deteriorating quality of water

The diminishing quality of water is a result of urbanization, industrial development, dumping of garbage from industries. This has led to increase in water borne diseases, which has compelled the Indian population to install water purifiers in households. The clean and sage drinking water is not easily accessible.

Market Restraints

The increasing demand for packaged drinking water acts as restraining factor for the growth of water purifier. Packaged drinking water has gained prominence due to its ease of availability and cost-effectiveness.
A large share of India’s population, especially in rural areas of the country, is still unaware about the harms that the drinking of impure water can cause to the health. The restraint lies in educating them to invest in the water purifiers.
The high costs of most water purifiers make it difficult for lower-middle Indian population to buy it. They still rely on traditional method of boiling water to kill the germs.

Industry Challenges

There lies a challenge of educating the large number of people about the efficiency of purifying technologies across rural India. The penetration in rural market is very low. Less than 5 per cent of the rural market is only addressed. Further, the water purifiers are considered to be a push product rather than pull product. This requires considerable concept selling rural markets.
The penetration of water purifiers is lower due to economic factors, lack of distribution networks and poor sales. The total market penetration of water purifiers in the country is just 6 per cent of which the share of electric ones is just 3 per cent.
Despite the contaminated water, 67 per cent of Indian households do not treat drinking water. And those who do, still relies on traditional method like boiling the water to kill germs.

Technology Trends

The various technologies available in the India water purifier market are gravity purifier, RO purifier, UV purifier, sediment purifier and water softener.
Livpure’s i-taste RO water purifier have introduced the technology by which consumers can customize their taste of water according to their preference.
Wifi enabled water purifier system is introduced that can be accessed remotely.

Pricing Trends

India is a price sensitive economy. Hence, manufacturers are focusing on developing low-cost purifiers to improve their product reach. Targeting the low-income group, Tata Group created Swach water purifier which uses processed rice hush ash, fused with nano-silver particles for water purification.

The price of water purifiers ranges from US$ 7 to US$ 280. The sophisticated water purifier that is technologically advanced costs between US$ 115 and US$ 215. Non-electric water purifiers products is available at less than US$ 25.

Regulatory Trends

Government initiatives like the National Rural Drinking Water Quality Monitoring and Surveillance Programme aims to spread awareness about water-borne diseases and improving the water quality.
The Haryana Government installed RO water purifier systems in all government schools in the state to provide purified drinking water to students.
Narendra Modi launched a major plan to provide clean and purified water to over 21,000 habitations. The programme was named as “Jal Shuddi” which aimed at providing eight litres of purified water per person per day for drinking and cooking purpose.

Market Size and Forecast

Import of household type water filters by value has grown at a CAGR of 15.2 per cent. Whereas in terms of volume, it has reduced at a CAGR of 21.5 per cent during FY 2014 to 2018 due to a reduction in customs duty.
The water purifier market in the country is worth USD 583 million of which USD 470 million is from product sales and rest from services.
Bangladesh is the largest importer of water filters for homes both in terms of value and volume for FY 2017 and FY 2018, followed by Philippines, Indonesia and Sri Lanka.
There are around 2.6 million electric units comprising RO, UV and RO+UV systems.
The size of Indian water purifier market is USD 868 million as of 2018. It was around US$ 723.6 million on 2017.

Market Outlook

The water purifier market is expected to expand at a CAGR of more than 11 per cent by 2023.
Transparency’s Market Research forecasts the Indian water purifier market will be worth $4.1 billion by 2024.
The market penetration of water purifiers is expected to increase 25 per cent in the next ten years.
Eureka Forbes is projected to constitute nearly 15 per cent of the water purifier market in 2021 while Okaya Power Ltd is forecasted to have about 5 per cent of the market share.
The RO and UV purifying technologies are expected to grow at fast rate as they purify the water to the maximum level. The RO based water purifier is expected to grow at a CAGR of 18.2 per cent.
The adoption of water purifier in household segment is expected to grow at a CAGR of 15.5 per cent.

Distribution Chain Analysis

The basis of channels of distribution includes retail stores, direct sales, sales and service dealers and e-commerce.

Competitive Landscape

The Indian water purifier market is characterized by the presence of good mix of international and domestic brands. Thought the market has witnessed several entrants, not many have succeeded in this market. The water purifier market is quite consolidated due to presence of few leading players.

The top four manufacturers account for over 66 per cent of the overall market revenue. The leading players are focusing on the launch of new water purifier models and leveraging their brand equity distribution strength. In the coming years, the competition is expected to get stiffer due to the entry of several local and small players.

Further, the low cost water purifiers are expected to enter the urban and rural market through either conventional distribution channels or non-governmental organizations.

Competitive Factors

After-sales service is one of the most important non-product competitive factor in water purifier market as consumers are very concerned about the maintenance cost. The manufacturers are focusing on innovative and cost competitive technology. They are also coming up with better quality and third party certified products meeting international standards.

Key Market Players

Major players operating in the water purifier market of India are Eureka Forbes Ltd, Kent RO Systems Ltd, Hindustan Unilever Ltd, Tata Chemicals Ltd, Livpure Pvt. Ltd, Panasonic India Pvt. Ltd, LG Electronics India Pvt. Ltd, Blue Star Ltd, Ion Exchange India Ltd and Okaya Power Pvt. Ltd. RO and UV water purifier have a large share in the Indian market.

The top two players Eureka Forbes and Kent RO holds a highest share of 65 per cent. Kent RO commands a market share of about 40 per cent in RO water purifier segment.

Kent Grand Plus Mineral RO+ UV Water Purifier

It comes under Kent RO System Ltd, which is the most renowned water purification brands in the world.It is based on patented Mineral ROTM technology. The water is purified using a double purification of RO, UV and ultrafiltration. This helps in giving the safest drinking water as even the dissolved salts and impurities are removed.

Havells Max RO+UV Water Purifier

It comes under Havells India Ltd, one of the best selling water purifier brand in India. This purifier is suitable for all kinds of sources of water such as river water, borewells, tap water and municipality water. It has seven stage water purification process.

Livepure Pep Pro++ 7 L RO + UV + UF Water Purifier

It is one of the top rated water purifier that is rated 4+ Stars. It is brand of SAR Group Company. This water purifier implements RO, UV, and UF technologies to deliver the pure water.

Blue Star Majesto

It comes under Blue Star Ltd. It has six stage water purification process that includes pre-sediment filter, pre-carbon filter, RO membrane, UV Lamp, Post Carbon filter and Aqua Test Booster.

Strategic Conclusion

The increasing pollution in the country and lack of fresh water supply by municipalities has driven the demand for water purifiers. Increasing health concerns and consumer awareness has equally surged the demand for water purifiers over the last five years.

Appendix

CAGR – Compound Annual Growth Rate
FY – Fiscal Year
RO – Reverse Osmosis
UV – Ultraviolet