2023 WATER MARKET INTELLIGENCE REPORT

The 2023 Water Market Intelligence Report highlights a critical state of wastewater treatment works (WWTWs) in South Africa, with 39% requiring urgent intervention. It identifies three primary investment areas: the restoration of municipal infrastructure (estimated at R8.14 billion), the circular economy potential of sludge beneficiation, and the deployment of renewable energy and energy efficiency (EE) technologies to reduce high operational costs. The report notes significant funding gaps and municipal capacity constraints but points to regulatory drivers, such as the 2019 liquid waste landfill ban, as catalysts for private sector involvement.

• The estimated capital investment required to restore the functionality of existing municipal wastewater treatment works (WWTWs) nationwide is approximately R8.14 billion, with Gauteng having the highest requirement at approximately R3.18 billion.
• Sludge beneficiation presents a significant circular economy opportunity, driven by a 2019 national ban on liquid waste to landfills and a phased-in restriction on organic waste to landfills in the Western Cape by 2027.
• There is a substantial opportunity for energy efficiency and renewable energy at WWTWs due to rising electricity costs; Eskom tariffs increased by 653% between 2007 and 2022, while WWTWs typically account for one-third of a municipality's electricity consumption.
• A significant funding gap exists in the water sector; the National Water and Sanitation Master Plan estimates a requirement of R898 billion over ten years to achieve universal access, with only R565 billion available, leaving a shortfall of R333 billion.
• Investment in combined heat and power (CHP) projects at WWTWs with existing anaerobic digesters is estimated to have a viable capital opportunity of approximately R1.1 billion.
• Major barriers to private investment in the sector include municipal creditworthiness, a lack of technical capacity to develop bankable projects, and complex Public-Private Partnership (PPP) processes that can take 8 to 12 years to complete.
• South Africa faces a growing water supply and demand gap, projected to be between 2.7 and 3.8 billion m3 per annum by 2030 if current demand growth continues.

APA

Naidoo, D., Roselt, M., & Mpofu, A. (2023). 2023 WATER MARKET INTELLIGENCE REPORT. GreenCape. https://greencape.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/WATER_MIR_2023_DIGITAL_SINGLES-1.pdf

Chicago

Naidoo, Deshanya, Marielle Roselt, and Ashton Mpofu. 2023 WATER MARKET INTELLIGENCE REPORT. GreenCape, 2023. https://greencape.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/WATER_MIR_2023_DIGITAL_SINGLES-1.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Naidoo |first1=Deshanya |last2=Roselt |first2=Marielle |last3=Mpofu |first3=Ashton |title=2023 WATER MARKET INTELLIGENCE REPORT |publisher=GreenCape |date=2023 |url=https://greencape.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/WATER_MIR_2023_DIGITAL_SINGLES-1.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{naidoo20232023, author = {Naidoo, Deshanya and Roselt, Marielle and Mpofu, Ashton}, title = {{2023 WATER MARKET INTELLIGENCE REPORT}}, institution = {GreenCape}, year = {2023}, url = {https://greencape.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/WATER_MIR_2023_DIGITAL_SINGLES-1.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }