An engineering economics approach to the estimation of forest fuel supply in North-Trøndelag county, Norway

The article reports a study performed in North-Trøndelag county in Norway, aiming at identifying the economic supply curve for forest fuels. Using an engineering economics approach, the potential forest fuel production is described as a function of the existing traditional forestry. Based on a set of energy raw materials including (i) harvesting residues, (ii) low-quality trees, (iii) thinnings and (iv) hardwoods, necessary adjustments of the existing forestry technology are described and used as a basis for the calculations. Depending on fuel market prices, a total annual amount of forest fuels close to 0.5 TWh is available in the county.