The 2013 Algae Industry Survey conducted by the Algae Biomass Organization found:
1) There was significant optimism in the algae industry that algae fuels will be price competitive with fossil fuels by 2020 and that production and hiring will increase in both the short and long term.
2) 91% of respondents believed that algae-based fuels will be cost-competitive by 2020, with nearly 1 in 4 producers expecting prices below $3 per gallon.
3) Expanding production capacity, cost-efficient systems, and harvesting/extraction were key industry challenges and priorities.
3. Survey Highlights
• There is significant optimism in the industry that:
• Algae fuels will be price competitive within the
decade.
• Production and hiring will increase in both the
short and long term.
• Supportive federal policy would accelerate
hiring and production.
4. On Track to Price Competitiveness
• 91% of respondents say it is likely that algae-based fuels will be cost-
competitive by 2020.
• Nearly 1 in 4 producers say the price will be below $3.00 per gallon by
2020.
Given what you know about the algae industry, in your opinion, how likely is it that
algae-based fuels will be cost-competitive with fossil fuels by 2020?
2012 Response 2013 Response 2013 Producers
Ratio Ratio Only
Extremely likely 13% 12% 16%
Very likely 22% 26% 31%
Moderately likely 34% 29% 27%
Slightly likely 20% 24% 21%
Not at all likely 10% 9% 5%
6. Industry Pursuing Full Range of Algae
Products
Does your company or organization produce any of the
following algal products? (select all that apply)
Producers
ABO Members Only
Vegetable oils for use in
food products 5% 11%
Feeds (fish and/or farm) 35% 35%
Bioplastics 4% 5%
Chemicals 11% 10%
Nutritional products or
nutraceuticals 30% 28%
Fuels 33% 29%
Fertilizers 21% 18%
Biomass for energy or
other uses 37% 36%
Other 9% 9%
7. Capacity Continues to Expand
• 25% of producers reported they
would be expanding in 2013 at an
existing facility
• 22% said they would expand with
new facilities
• 20% reported expansion and both
new and existing facilities.
9. Continued Job Growth Ahead
To the best of your knowledge, approximately how many people in your organization
or company (or division) are directly working (or will be working) on algae-related
business at the following times?
Beginning 2013 End of 2013 End of 2020
1-10 71% 58% 17%
11-50 20% 27% 30%
51-100 4% 4% 16%
101-500 4% 4% 8%
500+ 1% 0% 4%
Not sure 0% 6% 25%
10. Types of Jobs in Algae Industry
• Executives
• Scientists and researchers
• Marketers and salespeople
• Administrative, legal, human
resources
• Operations and production
• Financing
• Customer support
• Student
• Professor
11. Supportive Policy is Vital
• Interest from policymakers is high – more than half of
ABO members report hosting elected officials at their
facility.
• 90% of employers say better federal policy support
would accelerate hiring.
Have elected officials at any level (local, state, federal) ever visited your
facilities?
ABO Members Producers
Yes 52% 44%
No 43% 51%
Not sure 5% 5%
12. Top Policy Recommendations
The most important federal policies in building a robust algae
industry:
#1 Research and development grants
#2 Commercialization grants
#3 Tax credits and/or incentives
The future price of algae-based fuel is often debated in the media, so we asked a question about future price of algae-based fuel. Nearly 4 in 10 (37%) of producers in the industry survey predicted prices below $5.00/gal in 2020. While only 6% predicted prices more than $15.00 per gallon, a significant number (39 percent) indicated they “weren’t sure.”
The most critical challenges for the industry to achieve cost-competitiveness were identified by producers as cost-efficient production systems and harvesting and extraction systems.
Job growth was confidently predicted by employers for 2013. By 2020 some were projecting significant growth, but with more uncertainty (up to 30% of ABO members were not sure what their employment figures would be in 2020).
The industry’s relative youth becomes apparent in the types of policies they most support. When asked to rank a list of policies according to how important they were to building a robust algae industry the averaged responses placed “research and development grants” in the #1 spot. However, the average ranking scores for these policies were very close, meaning that only a few more votes for one of them could move their final ranking:Research and development grantsCommercialization grantsTax credits/incentivesThe Renewable Fuel StandardDepartment of Defense opportunitiesLoan guaranteesFuel subsidies
