Indium Market Overview:
Indium Market Size was estimated to be worth USD 450.5 Mn in 2021, registering a CAGR of 9.2% during the forecast period (2022-2030)
Indium is a shiny–soft silver colored metal generally occurring in trace amounts in association with zinc. Properties like enhanced thermal conductivity, high boiling point and good electrical conductivity makes indium crucial for several electronic application. For instance, it performs essential functions in a variety of high-value clean tech devices, carbon-free energy technologies, information & communication technology and has multiple coatings applications. The main source of Indium generally lies as a byproduct from the ores of other metals. To be specific sulfidic zinc ores.
One of the main driver which have tremendous potential to propel indium demand higher for several years is it’s applications in development of solar cells. As we know Solar cells convert solar energy (sunlight) into electricity. The power output of a solar cell decreases significantly if its internal resistance increases. One way to reduce the internal resistance of a solar cell is to apply a transparent conducting coating of Indium-Tin-Oxide (ITO), on the front illuminated surface of the solar cell. ITO films are made from indium, in fact around 45% of the total indium produced globally is directly employed into the development of Indium – Tin – Oxide. Thus with green energy going main stream, with major economies pumping millions of dollars into development of green energy infrastructure the demand for solar cells is set to rise and with this the demand for indium is also expected to skyrocket.
For instance according a report published by international energy agency. The investments on green energy increased by 8% and are now 2.4 trillion USD. These investments are estimated to hit the mark of 4 trillion USD by the years 2030
Market Dynamics:
Driver:
- Surging demand for electronic devices :
Indium is widely used in development of semiconductors. To be specific it is used as a dopant in materials in order to create P-type and N-type semiconductors. These semiconductors generally have applications in all modern electronic devices.
- Demand for cryogenic pumps :
Indium is among very few elements which could maintain their softness at ultra-low temperatures. This property makes it suitable in cryogenic pumps as they functions at ultra-low temperatures. Cryogenics pumps have multiple very crucial applications across the industries like medical, aerospace, manufacturing industry, semiconductor development and several others such applications. These pumps are usually used to compress or transfer liquefied gases which are at subzero temperatures.
- Surging demand for touch screen displays
With digitalization taking over the world at pace never witnessed before the demand for touch screen panels have gone through the roof. Touch screen are everywhere from your smart phones to smart windows. Today it is hard to find displays which are not touchscreen. Apart from touch screens indium have applications in other displays to May it be LCD’s and flat screens.
Restraint:
- Natural occurrence is extremely minuscule :
The main constraint faced by this market is limited supply of indium. It is found in very trace amounts indium is only 0.21 % parts per million the earth’s crust. To compare aluminum is 7,570,000 times more than the indium by mass present in earth crust. Very little supply and high demand results into high price due to supply and demand gap.
- Sources are concentrated to few countries :
Apart from its limited supply the occurrence is also limited to few countries for instance, more than Two third of the global indium ores are only concentrated in china. Making it vulnerable to supply chain constraints and international political conditions.
COVID-19 Impact:
Initially COVID -19 had sever impacts on the indium market. This negative impact was mainly due to governments restrictions in order to restrict the spread of virus. COVID restrictions resulted into interruptions in the global supply chain. Furthermore production and manufacturing activities were also halted due to labor shortages and lockdown. The consequential effect was low demand from end-user industries for indium. But in retrospect COVID is believed to have positive impact on indium market in the long run. The reason for this positive impact could be attributed to the augmented pace of digitalization. This pandemic has resulted into higher rate to technological integration in traditional business and we all know that indium has very crucial application in semiconductors which are backbone of technological devices.
Indium Report Coverage:
| Report Attributes | Report Details |
| Study Timeline | 2016-2030 |
| Market Size in 2030 (USD million) | 994.7 Mn |
| CAGR (2022-2030) | 9.49% |
| By Product Type | Primary, Secondary, and Type III |
| By Applications | Flat Panel Displays, ITO, Semiconductor Materials, Alloys, Batteries, Photovoltaics, Solders, Thermal Interface Materials. And Others |
| By Geography | North America, Europe, Asia Pacific,
Latin America, Middle East and Africa. |
| Key Players | Unicode, Indium Corporation, NYRSTAR N.V., Protect Materials Inc., KOREAZINC, PPM Pure Metals Gumby, Avalon Advanced Materials. |
Market Segmentation:
By Product Type
The product type segment is separated into Primary, Secondary, and Type III. The maximum market share is captured by primary segment. The primary segment refers to the indium which is extracted from the ores mainly zinc ores (90%). It is estimated that out of 1,380 tones global indium production 770 tones is from primary sources and 40% of this production comes from china. The primary indium in mainly used to produce indium tin oxide films which further have applications in various electronic devices.
On the other hand the secondary segment is estimated to gain significant market share in coming years. The secondary indium type refers to the indium which is produced by recovering indium from manufacturing wastes and EOL products (END OF LIFE) in recent times China, South Korea, and Japan have invested heavily in the facilities in order to monetize huge demand of indium. With better technologies the recovery rate for indium from waste electronic devices have increased and is estimated to increase further in coming years. The majority of secondary indium is extracted from ITO (indium-tin-oxide) and flat display panels. Moreover china and japan account for 85% of total secondary indium.
By End Use Industry
The end-user segment is categorized into Flat Panel Displays, ITO, Semiconductor Materials, Alloys, Batteries, Photovoltaics, Solders, thermal Interface Materials and Others. In this segment the major volume of indium is consumed by flat panel displays accounting for 54 % of total indium intake. This segment will also resister impressive growth in coming years too.
The indium-tin-oxide (ITO) films segment is also expected to resister significant market share in coming years. Due to its application in development of multiple electronic devices.
Solders also have a significant share in the demand for indium. Solders are materials which are used to join metal pieces or other conductive materials together by melting and flowing into the space between the two pieces. Indium has crucial role as solders and this application account for 10% total consumption of global indium produce. Indium has great wettability which makes it easy to flow in between cracks with this it also has low melting point. Furthermore indium has good conductivity so it can be used in electronic devices and semiconductors.
By region
The regional segment consist of Asia Pacific, Europe, North America, the Middle East, and Africa & Latin America. This segment was majorly subjugated by the Asia Pacific region. This region has massive consumption for electronic devices which have extensive usage of indium in them. Rising consumer spending and technological advancements have made the availability of electronic devices much easier as before. This trend of rising demand for electronics items is estimated to remain for next several years to come. This region is estimated to be the fastest growing region among all the listed regions. The North American region also holds a significant market share in the study period. This is due to high consumer expenditure on electronic devices and also presence of large number of industries which have applications of indium in there end products.
Indium Market Competitive Landscape:
The competitive landscape of the Indium market have been analyzed in this report, with the in depth profiling of the key market players operating in this industry. It was noticed that augmented spending in Research and Development (R&D), product innovation, business strategies, and product launches were propelling the market growth. The report also includes company overviews, financials, revenues, market potential, global presence, production sites and capacities, strengths and weaknesses. Key players in this market include-
- Unicode
- Indium Corporation
- NYRSTAR N.V.
- Rotech Materials Inc.
- KOREAZINC
- PPM Pure Metals GmbH
- Avalon Advanced Materials
Table of Content
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