Estimates of Wood Use by Bioenergy Projects Overstated; New Product Indicates 32% Success Rate

PRNewswire.com

ATHENS, Ga., Aug. 21 /PRNewswire/ -- All wood-consuming bioenergy projects are not created equal. For example, wood pellet-producing and wood-to-electricity projects rely on off-the-shelf, proven technologies while cellulosic ethanol projects depend on evolving and currently economically unviable technology. However, assuming all 100 wood bioenergy projects publicly announced in the US South succeeded, they would consume 40.9 million tons annually by 2020, a 20% increase of current total wood raw material use in the region. As a result, tracking and screening bioenergy projects remains increasingly difficult for those interested in renewable energy investments, regional economic development, and timber and timberland markets. Wood Bioenergy South, a new subscription product from Forisk Consulting, solves this challenge for those focused on bioenergy in the US South.

In addition to securing financing and identifying a suitable location, wood-dependent bioenergy projects are subject to technological limitations, permitting timelines, and raw material constraints. Together, these elements provide a means for evaluating and assessing the true viability of announced projects. Based on currently available information applied to technology and operational status screens, Wood Bioenergy South estimates actual expected new wood demand from bioenergy in the US South at 13.1 million tons annually by 2020. This implies 68% of currently announced projects will fail to become fully operational.
Timberland owners can use Wood Bioenergy South to track new

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