This report provides a status of the markets and technology development involved in growing a domestic bioenergy economy. It compiles and integrates information to provide a snapshot of the current state and historical trends influencing the development of bioenergy markets. This information is intended for policy-makers as well as technology developers and investors tracking bioenergy developments. It also highlights some of the key energy and regulatory drivers of bioenergy markets. This report is supported by the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO), and, in accordance with its mission, pays special attention to the progress and development of advanced liquid transportation fuels from cellulosic and algal biomass.
The bioenergy economy engages multiple industrial sectors across the biomass-to-bioenergy supply chain—from agricultural- and forestry-based industries that produce biomass materials, to manufacturers and distributors of biomass-based fuels, products, and power, to the ultimate end-user markets. The breadth of this report focuses on activities that occur after the production of biomass.
After opening with a discussion of the overall size and composition of the bioenergy market, this report features two major areas: one detailing the two major bioenergy markets—biofuels and biopower—and another giving an overview of bioproducts that have the potential to enable bioenergy production.
The biofuels section is broken out by fuel type with sections on ethanol, biodiesel, and hydrocarbon fuels (gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel). Ethanol includes both conventional starch ethanol and cellulosic ethanol. This report covers the development of the conventional ethanol industry as a backdrop for emerging cellulosic ethanol production, and discusses challenges with absorbing new production into the market. Hydrocarbon fuels include the developing renewable hydrocarbon biofuels market. Finally, the report offers an overview of the renewable natural gas, biopower, and bioproducts markets.
In total, the information contained in this report is intended to communicate an understanding of portions of the U.S. bioenergy market.