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available from thinnings to improve forest <br />health, although this resource was not <br />quantified for this analysis. As the cost of oil <br />increases, all price estimates increase (with <br />petroleum inputs for harvesting and <br />transportation), but so do the costs of coal <br />and natural gas. In other words, as fossil <br />fuels become more expensive, the delivered <br />cost of wood will increase but will become <br />increasingly competitive with nonrenewable <br />fuels. <br />Economic Impact Analysis <br />The potential economic impacts of <br />developing a wood - fueled power plant are <br />an important consideration for both public <br />and private interests in a community. In this <br />economic analysis, two sizes of power plant <br />were considered: 20 or 40 MW. The <br />construction of the plant would be a one- <br />time impact event that is assumed to occur <br />within a year, while the impacts of plant <br />operations continue annually over the life of <br />the plant, for 20 years or more. Wood fuel <br />costs were calculated from the regional <br />supply curves discussed previously in this <br />report. Economic impacts were estimated <br />using IMPLAN software and databases for <br />each county. These estimates included not <br />only the direct impacts of plant construction <br />and operation but also the indirect impacts <br />from local purchases and local spending by <br />employee households. Economic impacts <br />were evaluated for Buncombe and Orange <br />counties in North Carolina. Fuel typically <br />represented the largest operating cost for a <br />wood -fired power plant. Fuel costs averaged <br />$3.3 and $8.4 million annually for the 20 or <br />40 MW plants, respectively, however, costs <br />ranged from $7.4 to $9.4 million for the 40 <br />MW plant, due to differences in availability <br />of forest and wood waste resources, as well <br />as transportation infrastructure in these <br />counties (Table 4). Fuel costs were lower in <br />Orange County than in Buncombe County. <br />The economic impacts of plant construction <br />0 <br />$3,00 — <br />., <br />w <br />J rtRmmmrt WWWWWW� <br />$2,00 nv> t � %�r iJ�i /llJ /t it r i %llfi ii / %llli ii /; �ry <br />/Or/ /// / / /%/ 0/ .. At tlgd om C" III " <br />t. 1r <br />$0,50 <br />0 1 2 3 4 5Trfilllom IIST s Per Year <br />0 110 20 3,01 40 Mie0 m s <br />0 50,000 1 DUO 150,000 200,000 260,1000 3001001 3,50,000 Dry sme ar <br />3 51,1001 11D,0010 15,000 201.01807 25,O DO Tirudioad9year <br />�.... <br />6,000 10,0010 16,0010 me p0moereWyear <br />Figure 2. Supply curves for woody biomass indicate the cost and quantity of wood <br />at 15- minute hauling intervals. <br />5 <br />