Circuit Breaker Market – Global Industry Size, Share, Trends, Opportunity, and Forecast, 2018-2028, Segmented By Voltage (Low Voltage, Medium Voltage and High Voltage), By Insulation (Air, Vacuum, Oil and Gas), By Installation (Outdoor and Indoor), By End-User (T&D Utilities, Power Generation, Renewables and Railways), By Region, Competition

Market Overview

The Global Circuit Breaker Market achieved a valuation of USD 8.72 billion in 2022. This trajectory reflects a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 5.91% during the forecast period. The sector's expansion is attributed to escalating demands for efficient networks and renewable energy sources. Industries such as electronics, automotive, and telecommunications require innovative equipment due to escalating concerns over short circuits and power fluctuations. Consequently, circuit breakers and fuses are poised for substantial growth throughout the projection period. These devices offer protection against unforeseen power fluctuations triggered by factors like overvoltage, overloads, and short circuits. Such disruptions impact various equipment, spanning industrial machinery, residential appliances, IT products, and electric tools. By regulating equipment's electric load, these devices also optimize energy consumption, driving their increasing adoption throughout the forecast phase.

Key Market Drivers

Rising Investments in Renewable Energy for Power Generation

The International Energy Agency (IEA) forecasts global investments in renewable generation to reach USD 281 billion in 2020. To connect power generating stations to switchyards and the electrical grid, renewable energy sources like photovoltaic and wind generators necessitate dedicated protection systems with circuit breakers playing a pivotal role. These breakers form integral components of electrical systems, upholding power system protection and supply regulation. As concerns about renewable power reliability mount, the market for renewable generation and distribution expands, subsequently propelling the global circuit breaker market. Data from the BP Statistical Review of World Energy underscores the significance of renewable electricity generation, accounting for 2805.51 Terawatt-hours of global electricity generation in 2019. Utilities increasingly focus on integrating renewable energy to decarbonize power distribution and safeguard the environment. This trend positions renewable sources to hold a substantial share in the future's total power generation mix. This mounting adoption of renewable energy heightens demand for circuit breakers, integral for protecting and managing electrical power systems.

Boosting Adoption of Circuit Breaker Systems through Electrification Initiatives

Numerous developing nations are implementing electrification programs to link rural areas to power grids. Additionally, various countries aim to integrate diverse grid zones, establishing comprehensive nationwide grids. These initiatives bolster prospects for utility-scale switches, driven by enhanced electricity availability prompting rapid infrastructure development and robust electrical energy resources. An illustrative instance is the World Bank's sponsorship of over USD 2.3 billion for infrastructure and reforms supporting the West Africa Power Pool (WAPP). This initiative is crucial in achieving universal power access across the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) by 2030. Consequently, the demand for electrical switching devices, indispensable for safe and reliable gadget operation, bolsters global infrastructure project growth. This trend positively influences the circuit breaker market in the forthcoming years.

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Key Market Challenges

Stringent Environmental and Safety Regulations for SF6 Circuit Breakers

In compliance with the Kyoto Protocol, SF6 is classified as a potent greenhouse gas with a high global warming potential (GWP) of 23,000. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) categorizes it as extremely detrimental, leading to regulations curbing its emissions. Although no alternative matches SF6's efficiency, policies against its usage and associated procurement costs challenge market expansion. Imperfect joints during SF circuit breaker manufacturing can cause hazardous SF6 gas leakage, threatening nearby personnel due to its asphyxiating nature. The arced form of SF6 gas is also toxic if inhaled. Addressing these concerns, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) instituted measures for detecting SF6 gas leakage from breaker tanks. Regular cleaning of internal components within a clean and dry setting is crucial to prevent damage to sensitive SF6 circuit breaker parts. Ensuring SF6 gas quality during transport and maintenance is vital, as it directly affects SF6 circuit breaker performance and reliability. The industry grapples with these issues, necessitating innovative solutions and collaboration among stakeholders and technical experts.

Transition to Smart Grids and Digitalization

Smart grids leverage technologies like sensors, communication networks, and data analytics to heighten grid efficiency, reliability, and responsiveness. While this transition offers myriad benefits, it also presents substantial challenges for traditional circuit breakers. Smart grids demand circuit breakers capable of functioning within dynamic and automated environments. Traditional breakers, designed for manual operation, lack the digital intelligence essential for seamless interaction within smart grid ecosystems. Integrating breakers into smart grids mandates sensor integration, communication interfaces, and advanced control systems. The challenge lies in retrofitting existing infrastructure with these features or designing new breakers meeting modern grid architecture demands. Moreover, digitalization introduces cybersecurity risks. As breakers interconnect and communicate with other grid elements, they become potential entry points for cyberattacks. Ensuring breaker and grid security is paramount, necessitating robust cybersecurity measures. Balancing digitalization benefits with cybersecurity imperatives poses a complex challenge, prompting the circuit breaker industry to adapt to evolving energy landscapes.

Key Market Trends

Escalating Demand for Integrating Renewable Energy

As the global shift towards cleaner, sustainable energy persists, circuit breakers play a pivotal role in seamlessly integrating renewable energy systems such as solar and wind power into grids. Characterized by variability and intermittency, renewable sources cause power generation fluctuations. Advanced-sensing, control-capable circuit breakers effectively manage these fluctuations, ensuring smooth integration. These breakers rapidly respond to solar panel or wind turbine output changes, stabilizing grids and ensuring reliable power supply. With increasing renewable energy capacities, robust circuit protection and coordination become paramount. Breakers designed to handle higher voltage, fault currents, and power quality issues are essential to accommodate growing renewable energy contributions. Manufacturers are actively developing breakers with enhanced protection, adaptive controls, and communication capabilities, facilitating seamless renewable energy integration through innovation and collaboration.

Segmental Insights

Installation Insights

The outdoor segment is projected to dominate the market over the forecast period. Encompassing circuit breakers engineered for outdoor installation, operation, and protection, this segment caters to diverse environmental conditions, including weather fluctuations and element exposure. Heightened energy consumption, especially in developing economies, fuels power infrastructure investments. Outdoor breakers play a critical role in expanding and upgrading distribution systems to meet surging energy demands. They find widespread application in safeguarding equipment and ensuring uninterrupted power in industrial and commercial settings. Their prevalence extends to outdoor substations, industrial facilities, and large commercial complexes.

End-User Insights

The T&D Utilities segment is poised to dominate the market through the forecast period. This sector is pivotal in ensuring efficient, reliable electricity distribution from power generation sources to end-users. Modernization efforts within T&D utilities, involving infrastructure upgrades and digital technology integration, underscore circuit breaker significance. Smart grids, characterized by two-way communication and real-time data exchange, demand intelligent breakers. These breakers communicate with other grid components, furnish load data, and enhance fault detection, optimizing grid operation.

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Regional Insights

The Asia Pacific region is set to dominate the market throughout the forecast period. Rapid economic growth, urbanization, industrialization, and mounting energy demands confer substantial importance on this region. Robust breakers are indispensable for industries protecting equipment, averting electrical faults, and ensuring operational continuity. Industrial expansion in China, India, Japan, South Korea, and beyond drives energy consumption. The manufacturing, automotive, and technology industries' growth escalates demand for industrial-grade circuit protection solutions. Higher consumer income, rural electrification initiatives, and the adoption of consumer electronics further contribute to circuit breaker demand.

Recent Developments

• In January 2020, Siemens acquired C&S Electric, a reputable manufacturer of electrical and power electronic equipment, to address the increasing demand for electrification products. The acquisition encompassed C&S Electric's Indian operations, specifically their low-voltage switchgear components and panels, low and medium voltage power bus bars, as well as their protection and metering devices businesses.
• In September 2020, Eaton Cummins Automated Transmission Technologies announced the expansion of the Endurant Automated Transmission lineup with the introduction of the Endurant XD series. This series represents a high-performance automated transmission meticulously designed for on-highway applications, including double and triple trailer trucks, as well as demanding on/off-highway applications such as dump and logging trucks.
• In November 2021, Siemens Smart Infrastructure enhances the Sentron line of air circuit breakers with the introduction of the new 3WA series. This series plays a critical role in safeguarding electrical installations in buildings, infrastructure, and industrial facilities against overload, short circuits, and ground faults. It serves as a crucial component in low-voltage power distribution, ensuring the protection of these systems.
• In January 2021, ABB India launches the Formula DIN-Rail, a comprehensive range of isolators, residual current circuit breakers (RCCBs), and miniature circuit breakers (MCBs) tailored for the retail electrical market. This market in India is estimated to be valued at USD 250 million. The ABB Formula DIN-Rail portfolio, with its modern design, offers superior protection for electrical circuits, guarding against potential risks posed by overload, short circuits, and earth leakages in various structures. The MCBs in this product line come with a 7-year warranty. Manufactured in Bengaluru (Karnataka) at ABB India's smart buildings factory, this product line meets international standards. With a production capacity of 12 million MCB poles per year, this factory ensures the consistent supply of these high-quality electrical components.

Key Market Players

• ABB Ltd.
• CG Power and Industrial Solutions Ltd.
• Eaton Corp. Plc.
• General Electric Co
• Larsen & Toubro Ltd.
• LS ELECTRIC Co. Ltd.
• Mitsubishi Electric Corp.
• Schneider Electric SE
• Siemens AG
• TE Connectivity Ltd.