Mooring Buoy Market Size, Share & Industry Analysis, By Type (Plastic Buoy and Steel Buoy) and By End-user (Oil & Gas, Marine & Defense, Aquaculture, Others), and Regional Forecast, 2024-2032

The global mooring buoy market size was USD 0.81 billion in 2023. The market is projected to grow from USD 0.85 billion in 2024 to USD 1.54 billion by 2032 at a CAGR of 7.75% during the forecast period.

Mooring Buoy is used for several activities at offshore locations. These can be used to maintain the ship position as desired for a particular period, and these are also used as navigation symbols to ensure the safety of the ocean explorers and aquaculture industry. Marine and defense sectors also deploy it to maintain their positions as ordered. The oil and gas industry has been the front runner in buoys deployment as it involves the use of floating production vessels, support vessels, cargo ships, and offshore rigs.

The spread of COVID-19 had a heavy impact on every industry, especially the industries operating at an offshore location, such as the oil and gas industry, aquaculture, and renewable energy (offshore wind). Though mooring buoys, once installed, require only maintenance activities at some point during their life cycle. The new installations were halted in 2020 as the timeline for projects was pushed ahead, and spending in the oil and gas industry, renewable industry, and ship manufacturing were slashed. But with the end-use sectors of mooring buoys showing revival signs in the latter half of 2020, the market is expected to be at the pre-pandemic levels by the end of 2022.

Mooring Buoy Market Trends

Rising Demand for Aquaculture is a Prominent Trend

Aquaculture, which is directly related to the perseverance of oceans and aquatic life, has seen immense growth over the years. As per the data from the food and agriculture organization of the United Nations, there has been a 527% rise in global aquaculture production from 1990 to 2018. Similarly, global food fish consumption has increased by 122% in the same period. This trend is set to be continued in coming years and, therefore, will improve the deployment percentage of these buoys as they play an important role in navigation and safety.   

Increasing Investment for Naval Defense is Set to Positively Shape the Market Dynamics

Several countries are exposed to territories by sea routes, and to ensure the safety of the country, the governments around the world have heavily invested in their navy over the years to ensure their dominance in seas to a certain extent. Mooring buoys are used for naval ships to adhere to a certain location, and these are also sometimes used at dockyards and in the mid-sea for loading and unloading by cargo ships. This trend towards ensuring the safety of the nation and improving international trade via waterways will drive the growth of the market.  

Mooring Buoy Market Growth Factors

Increasing Energy Demand Will Drive Adoption of Mooring Buoy in Oil and Gas Sector

The energy demand across the globe has increased at an exponential level over the years. The migration of people from rural to urban areas has been the major catalyst to it, along with the growing population. According to a recent study by the United Nations, more the 60% of the total global population will be residing in urban areas by the end of 2050. This will further spike the energy demand and, therefore, will lead to an increase in exploration activities at offshore locations at increasing depths. This will certainly drive up the demand for mooring buoys deployment in various regions.

Rising Focus on Offshore Wind Power to Enhance Market Growth

The rising inclination of the governments of the countries toward increasing the renewable energy share in the energy mix is providing a positive impact on market expansion. For instance, in May 2023, the government of Malaysia announced that it would reach around 70% of renewables in the power mix by 2050. The country also aimed to achieve a 40% share of renewable energy in its power mix by the year 2035, as per its target set in 2021. In recent years, it has been witnessed that governments of different nations have laid a strong focus on offshore renewable energies, mainly wind farms, due to their higher efficiency and presence of high-speed wind. Therefore, the burgeoning growth in the offshore renewable energy sector, mainly in offshore wind, is leading to the requirement for mooring buoys to support floating wind turbines, wave energy devices, and other renewable energy platforms.

RESTRAINING FACTORS

Increasing Penetration of Renewables in Energy Mix to Obstruct Market Growth

One of the major threats to the mooring buoys market is the increasing adoption of renewable sources for power generation across every nation in the world. Specifically, solar power poses a major threat to the market developments, as it directly slashes the oil and gas demand for power generation and it is very feasible and comical as compared to offshore wind power, which uses buoys.  This, in turn, will act as a blockade to the global industry. As per the renewable energy targets announced by each country, solar is expected to play a key role and account for more than 50% of every country’s green energy target.

According to the carbon brief analysis, the UK government aims to have about half of its electricity by renewable sources in 2025. Germany is on its path to account for renewable energy for 65% of its total energy by 2030. China plans to achieve 16% of its energy by renewable energy by 2030. Brazil aims to have 42.5% of its primary energy supply to be renewable by the end of 2023.

Mooring Buoy Market Segmentation Analysis

By Type Analysis

Low Maintenance and Long Life of Plastic Buoys Will Drive the Segment’s Growth 

The global market by asset type is broadly categorized into plastic buoy and steel buoy.  Over the historic year’s steel buoys were preferred owing to their rigidity and solidity to withstand harsh offshore conditions. With the technological advancements, plastic buoys are now being equipped with all the required characteristics, which have led to their dominance in the market. The low level of maintenance along with life expectancy of 20-25 years will be the prominent factors for their dominance to be continued in the coming years.

By End-user Analysis

Rising Exploration Activities at Offshore Locations Will Lead to Domination of Oil & Gas Segment

Based on end-users, the market segmentation is divided into oil & gas, marine & defense, aquaculture, and others.

The oil and gas sector has been the major deplorer of the mooring buoys as exploration activities are carried out at different depths such as shallow, deep, and ultra-deep. The measures to ensure the safety of the whole offshore operation system require limits to be set over migration areas and navigation. Marine & defense always require these buoys for various functions and therefore hold a significant mooring buoy market share in the global market. Other than this, offshore wind and aquaculture, which have individually grown at a healthy rate, are expected to witness substantial investment for these products in upcoming years. 

REGIONAL INSIGHTS

The global market has been analyzed across major regions, which include North America, Asia Pacific, Europe, Latin America, and the Middle East & Africa.

The Asia Pacific region has been the dominant region in the global market owing to the deployment of mooring buoys in various end-user sectors in the region. Considering every sector where they are deployed, such as oil & gas, offshore wind, aquaculture, and others, the countries such as China, India, Vietnam, South Korea are front runners who have led the Asia Pacific to dominate the market. The rising energy demand in the region has led developing nations like India to invest massively in the renewable energy sector, including offshore wind power. This is expected to drive the market in the Asia Pacific region in the upcoming years.

The offshore oil and gas sector, along with strong investments in naval defense, has driven the installation in North America. The growing industrialization in the region, which leads to increased energy demand, is a major driving force in the market growth.

Offshore wind is expected to drive the growth of mooring buoys in Europe as the region moves towards achieving its green energy targets via offshore wind energy. Latin America & the Middle East, and Africa have key regional nations such as Brazil, Mexico, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Peru that are planning to invest in offshore wind and currently have a strong offshore oil and gas industry that has had installations over the years.

List of Key Companies in Mooring Buoy Market

Sealite & Gisman Are Expected to Lead the Market with Wide Product Portfolio & Brand Stability 

The global industry landscape has observed continuous participation from different mooring buoy manufacturers operating at different levels. As they are large equipment that requires regular interventions, many of the manufacturers operating in the market have their reach limited to a certain extent. The capabilities of the company to provide services in different parts of the world with a big workforce play an important role towards domination in a region and global market.

Some key players such as Sealite and Gisman have therefore had the upper hand in the global market. Following the offshore rules by governing bodies and managing the extent to which aquaculture activities can be carried out also have an impact on the operating areas of a particular company. The market currently has many players in each region, and this trend is set to continue, which will lead to a competitive market in the upcoming years.  

LIST OF KEY COMPANIES PROFILED:

• Trelleborg Marine and Infrastructure (UAE)


• Sealite (Australia)


• FenderCare (UK)


• Gisman (France)


• Mobilis SA (France)


• Floatex Srl (Italy)


• Corilla Marine (UK)


• Walsh Marine Products (USA)


• Norfloat International Ltd (UK)


• Anchor Marine (USA)


• Tidal Marine (Canada)


• IRM Offshore and Marine Engineers Pvt. Ltd. (India)

KEY INDUSTRY DEVELOPMENTS:

• In October 2020 - Orwell Offshore secured the contract for buoy fabrication, which will be 16.5 m (54.1 ft) in diameter, 10.6 m (34.8 ft) tall, and weighing around 290 tons. Following the contract, Pinnacle Oil & Gas is expected to install the buoy, and Drydocks World - Dubai will carry out the procurement, fabrication engineering, assembly, machining, inspection, mechanical completion, testing, and load-out of the SPM buoy.


• In September 2020 - GISMAN announced the successful completion of supplies of modular polyethylene buoys, LED lights, AIS and monitoring system, traffic lights, as well as technical assistance for the design of the tower in Morocco. The project has been carried out with assistance from a local partner ANFAL.

REPORT COVERAGE

The report focuses on the global mooring buoy market highlights leading regions across the world to offer a better understanding of the user. Furthermore, the market research report provides insights into the latest industry trends and analyzes technologies that are being deployed at a rapid pace at a global level. It further highlights some of the growth-stimulating factors and restraints, industry SWOT analysis, company profiles of different players, helping the reader to gain in-depth knowledge about the industry.

Report Scope & Segmentation