The EIA collected data from 76 operating manufacturers of densified biomass fuel to complete the report. The report does not include data on facilities with annual production capacities of less than 10,000 tons, which report data annually rather than monthly.
The 76 manufacturers surveyed for August had a total combined production capacity of 12.6 million tons per year and collectively had the equivalent of 2,504 full-time employees.
Respondents purchased 910,000 tons of raw biomass feedstock in August, produced 930,000 tons of densified biomass fuel and sold 1.06 million tons of densified biomass fuel. Production included 163,971 tons of heating pellets and 766,203 tons of utility pellets.
Domestic sales of densified biomass fuel in August reached 188,057 tons at an average price of $224.00 per ton. Exports in August reached 874,384 tons at an average price of $194.63 per ton.
Inventories of premium/standard pellets fell to 253,748 tons in August, down from 264,517 tons in July. Inventories of utility pellets expanded to 474,202 tons in August, up from 461,956 tons in July.
Data gathered by the EIA shows that total U.S. densified biomass fuel capacity reached 12.69 million tons in August, with all of that capacity listed as currently operating or temporarily not in operation. Capacity included 1.81 million tons in the East, 10.25 million tons in the South, and 632,450 tons in the West.
