Biomass Energy Outlook

By Jenner, Mark

JAM-PACKED YEAR OF BIOENERGY INDUSTRY GROWTH THIS LAST YEAR was a mighty big year of economic growth in generating energy from biomass. First-generation commercial-scale projects began generating bio-BTUs like: E3 Biofuels' ethanol/feedlot, Fibrominn's 55 MW manure-fueled power plant and Microgy's manure to natural gas facility. Then, in December, E3 Biofuels filed for bankruptcy.

Last year began with seemingly every Midwest rural community announcing a corn-based ethanol plant. By fall, the bottom fell out of the ethanol and biodiesel expansion. It went from one extreme to the other.

Communities both loved and feared these projects, creating tax incentives, filing lawsuits against projects, or both. Public opposition transitioned from thermodynamic inefficiency to insufficient water supplies and then settled on the food vs. fuel debate. Grain farmers cheered the $4/bushel price of corn. The livestock industry became antibiofuels.

The year ended with apprehension about the future of biofuels, but this is not the end of the story. Economic growth is measured in decades - not in weeks or months. We are just getting started.

Project activity in 2007 was impressive. Even after adjusting for cancelled ethanol projects, there was still over 10 billion gallons of ethanol project activity - 500 million gallons of that was focused on cellulosic ethanol. Biodiesel had 2.5 billion gallons of capacity on the drawing board, or under construction. Over 2 million tons of fuel pellet milling capacity are planned or on the way. I also recorded 700 MW of electrical production from solid biomass or from methane gas in landfills or manure digesters.

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