PUBLISHER: Meticulous Research | PRODUCT CODE: 2138410
PUBLISHER: Meticulous Research | PRODUCT CODE: 2138410
The global Data Center Water & Wastewater Treatment Equipment Market was valued at USD 2,781.8 million in 2025. It is estimated to reach USD 3,200.0 million in 2026 and is projected to grow to USD 10,100.0 million by 2036, at a CAGR of 12.2% during the forecast period. This report offers a detailed look at the market, covering key trends, treatment technologies, cooling technologies and their effect on water demand, regulations, competitive activity, and future growth opportunities.
Data center water and wastewater treatment equipment treats the water that enters, circulates within, and leaves data center cooling systems, including membranes, filtration, ion exchange and softening, chemical dosing, disinfection, evaporation and crystallization, and monitoring and control equipment, together with aftermarket services and spares. Demand is rising because cooling consumes large volumes of water: the International Energy Agency estimates global data center water use at about 560 billion liters a year, possibly reaching 1.2 trillion liters by 2030, and a single large facility may withdraw up to five million gallons a day.
AI servers are pushing data centers toward liquid cooling, which needs much cleaner water than traditional cooling towers and therefore more reverse osmosis, deionization, fine filtration, and continuous monitoring. Water rules are also tightening, with the EU requiring facilities of 500 kW and above to report water usage effectiveness and several Indian states mandating zero liquid discharge, while Amazon, Alphabet, Microsoft, and Meta have committed to water positive operations by 2030. Suppliers are responding through deals and new offerings, including Ecolab's acquisition of CoolIT Systems for about USD 4.75 billion in July 2026 and Veolia's reclaimed water agreement with Amazon in April 2026.
The report examines market drivers and restraints, key trends, treatment technologies, cooling technology and its effect on water treatment demand, the ecosystem and value chain, regulations on water withdrawal, discharge, and reporting, and investment trends. It explains why spending per megawatt is rising fastest in water-stressed and hot regions and why retrofit projects are growing faster than new builds. It also provides market forecasts, segment-level insights, and regional analysis across 5 regions and 26 countries and sub-regions to support business, investment, and product decisions.
Market Dynamics
The rapid expansion of AI and hyperscale data centers is the main force behind market growth, as every new facility needs a complete water system and the IEA expects data center electricity use to more than double from 415 TWh in 2024 to 945 TWh by 2030. Larger campuses also need engineered treatment plants with several treatment trains, storage, and recycling rather than simple packaged systems. The adoption of liquid cooling adds further demand, because direct-to-chip cooling cannot tolerate scale or particles and requires high-purity water and continuous monitoring.
Advanced treatment and recovery systems require significant capital for storage, pumping, controls, and space, and the business case is weak where municipal water is still cheap, especially for smaller enterprise and colocation sites. Adding treatment to existing facilities built around evaporative cooling is also difficult, as it requires changes to piping, plant space, and controls without interrupting operations. In addition, operators must balance water savings against higher energy use, and suppliers must deliver large treatment systems on tight schedules for gigawatt-scale AI campuses.
Zero liquid discharge systems offer strong opportunities in places where discharge permits cannot be obtained or water is very scarce, such as the Gulf states, parts of India and China, and the U.S. Southwest. Water recycling and reuse offers an even broader opportunity, particularly in retrofit projects, since most operating facilities discharge cooling tower blowdown without recovery. Meanwhile, water quality is becoming a design specification set alongside the cooling system, and operators are switching from drinking water to reclaimed water, which requires more treatment.
Segment Analysis
The report analyzes the market by offering, application, data center type, deployment, and geography, helping stakeholders identify the most promising growth opportunities.
Based on offering, the market is segmented into membrane treatment equipment, filtration equipment, ion exchange and water softening equipment, chemical dosing and feed systems, disinfection systems, evaporation and crystallization equipment, monitoring and control equipment, and aftermarket services and spares. In 2026, membrane treatment equipment is expected to account for the largest share of the market, as membrane systems are installed at several points within the same facility and are needed to reach the purity that liquid cooling requires. Evaporation and crystallization equipment is expected to grow the fastest from a small base as discharge restrictions spread, while monitoring and control equipment grows the fastest among the larger categories, supported by water reporting rules.
Based on application, the market is segmented into make-up and raw water treatment, cooling water treatment, wastewater and blowdown treatment, water recycling and reuse, zero liquid discharge, and other applications. In 2026, cooling water treatment is expected to hold the largest share, as it applies to every facility throughout its operating life. Zero liquid discharge is expected to grow the fastest, while water recycling and reuse grows the fastest among the larger applications and adds the most value in absolute terms.
Based on data center type, the market is segmented into hyperscale, colocation, enterprise, edge, and government and institutional data centers. In 2026, hyperscale data centers are expected to hold the largest share, as new capacity is concentrated in large campuses that install engineered treatment plants. Edge data centers are expected to grow the fastest, supported by the rollout of small sites close to users.
Based on deployment, the market is segmented into new-build installations and retrofit and upgrade. In 2026, new-build installations are expected to hold the larger share, reflecting the volume of capacity under construction. Retrofit and upgrade is expected to grow faster, driven by tighter water rules at existing sites, rising water costs, and the many older facilities built without recycling capability.
Regional Analysis
The report covers North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America, and the Middle East & Africa, spanning 26 countries and sub-regions. The regional analysis considers installed and planned data center capacity, climate, water availability, water withdrawal and discharge rules, sustainability reporting requirements, and supplier presence.
In 2026, North America is expected to account for the largest share of the global market, with the U.S. as the largest country market. The region holds the largest installed base of hyperscale capacity, including major clusters in Northern Virginia, Texas, Phoenix, Atlanta, and the Pacific Northwest, and most announced AI campus investment, with many new builds located in water-stressed counties.
Asia-Pacific is expected to grow the fastest during the forecast period, driven by cloud and AI investment across China, India, Japan, and Southeast Asia, hot and humid climates that raise water use per megawatt, and strict water rules in Singapore, China, and several Indian states; China is the largest market in the region and India is expected to grow the fastest. Europe's market is shaped by EU water usage effectiveness reporting rules, with Germany as its largest market. The Middle East & Africa has the highest treatment intensity per megawatt because of desalinated supply and extreme heat, with the U.A.E. as its largest market, while Latin America is led by Brazil and growing fastest in Mexico.
Competitive Landscape
The report provides a detailed review of the competitive landscape, covering key growth strategies, competitive benchmarking, the competitive dashboard, and market share analysis, together with profiles of leading companies including their financial performance, product portfolios, strategic developments, and SWOT analyses.
The market is fragmented, and no supplier holds a dominant position. Based on 2025 market share, Veolia ranked first, followed by Xylem, Ecolab, and Kurita. Membrane supply is the most concentrated part of the market, engineered systems and zero liquid discharge are limited to suppliers with both membrane and thermal capability, and dosing, filtration, and packaged equipment are the most fragmented. Acquisitions, sector-specific offerings, and partnerships with data center operators are the main strategies, including Xylem's acquisition of Evoqua, Veolia's full ownership of Veolia Water Technologies & Solutions, and Ecolab's acquisition of CoolIT Systems.
The competitive benchmarking compares companies on their offerings, application coverage, engineering and thermal capability, service presence, and data center project experience. Companies compete on delivery certainty, qualification with hyperscale operators, regional service coverage, and the ability to supply complete systems from pretreatment to recovery.
Key companies profiled in the report include Veolia (France), Xylem Inc. (U.S.), Ecolab Inc. (U.S.), Kurita Water Industries Ltd. (Japan), Pentair plc (Ireland), DuPont Water Solutions (U.S.), Toray Industries, Inc. (Japan), Nitto Denko Corporation (Japan), De Nora (Italy), Aquatech International LLC (U.S.), Gradiant Corporation (U.S.), Ovivo Inc. (Canada), Thermax Limited (India), WesTech Engineering, LLC (U.S.), Organo Corporation (Japan), Wigen Water Technologies (U.S.), Lenntech B.V. (Netherlands), SAMCO Technologies, Inc. (U.S.), Grundfos (Denmark), and ProMinent GmbH (Germany).
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Key Questions Answered