Abstract
Biomass utilisation has been one of the most pertinent topics in the field of sustainability. An example of biomass resource usage is renewable electricity (REL) using bioresources (Bio-REL). Although Bio-REL is widely disseminated globally, existing research suggests that it may be less economically efficient than other REL sources. The cost of Bio-REL has not changed in recent years, but the cost of solar or photovoltaic (PV) REL has been significantly reduced. Some studies also assert that retail Bio-REL is preferred less than PV-REL. As this is not well established in the literature, this study analysed the average levelised costs of energy (LCOE) and preferences for retail Bio-REL and PV-REL while focusing on the case of Japan. The results indicate that the average LCOE of retail Bio-REL was 1.4 times greater than that of PV-REL, while the willingness to pay (WTP) for Bio-REL was about half. The analysis has considerable relevance for countries other than Japan with comparative cost and preference for both REL sources. The research raises an important issue regarding the efficiency of the strategy of REL dissemination and proposes that a comprehensive economic analysis of the social benefits of Bio-REL be conducted.
Highlights
Many countries have gone to great lengths to develop new biomass resource and energy usage
This study analysed the comparative efficiencies of retail Bio-renewable electricity (REL) and PV-REL in
It reviewed the relevant literature required to analyse the efficiency of REL introduction, including levelised costs of energy (LCOE) and lifecycle CO2 emissions; conducted a choice experiment (CE) to analyse the willingness to pay (WTP) of Bio-REL and PV-REL; and compared the efficiencies of Bio-REL and PV-REL
Summary
Many countries have gone to great lengths to develop new biomass resource and energy usage. This has been especially so because it may improve local sustainability by improving environmental performance, such as waste biomass utilisation or CO2 emission reduction, and local vitalisation in the course of new local industrial development. It could be argued that biomass utilisation has been one of the most relevant topics in the field of sustainability. An analysis that focused on retail Bio-REL was carried out to obtain a snapshot of the current status in terms of economic efficiency of biomass resource usage with concrete figures in Japan. We believe our paper provides important insights for further undertaking biomass development to improve sustainability and is relevant to this journal
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