Breaking Down Barriers to Bio-Based Investment with Bioeconomy Development Opportunity (BDO) Zone Ratings

(Ecostrat) National Workshop Agreement on Bioeconomy Development Opportunity (BDO) Zones -- In order to help catalyze and accelerate clean fuels project development in Canada, the Standards Council of Canada supported a Workshop Agreement led by Ecostrat to identify key siting requirements for new plants that produce biofuels (including SAF), renewable chemicals, biogas, bio products, and clean hydrogen.

The bioeconomy is experiencing a rapid acceleration driven by advancements in biotechnology, sustainable practices, and increasing demand for renewable resources, and is poised to continue its growth in the future as more industries and economies transition towards a more sustainable and circular model. However, there are few, if any, tools and initiatives that address major barriers to bio-based investment. Specifically, there is no way to effectively “signal” key siting requirements such as regional biomass supply chain and infrastructure risk to bio-project developers in a credible and efficient manner. BDO Zone Ratings address this barrier to new clean fuels development and are essential to unlocking and accelerating investment in the sector.

In January 2023, Ecostrat hosted a series of virtual workshops with bio-based project developers, community members and economic developers, and capital markets. The goals were to identify, validate, and clarify regional risk categories for assessing and rating biomass feedstock and infrastructure assets for geographic locations. Feedback from the workshops has since been incorporated into a National Workshop Agreement to address technical requirements designed to improve quantification of regional biomass supply chain and infrastructure risk, and address regional development potential of new biofuel, renewable chemical, biogas, or bioproduct manufacturing plants.

Additionally, feedback from the workshop will be incorporated into a new National Technical Specification related to BDO Zones to be published later this year. It will also further guide the development of associated tools to de-risk and accelerate the deployment of bio-based projects.

“It is our intention and goal that the guidelines identified in the Workshop Agreement be integrated into the range of economic development tools, de-risking strategies, and policies used by regional economic development bodies, project development companies, investors, capital markets and governments who want to move towards net zero by participating in the rapidly growing global bioeconomy.” Jordan Solomon, CEO/President, Ecostrat.

“Enabling the growth of bio-based industries is an exceedingly important step to securing a more sustainable future. Leveraging tools such as this National Workshop Agreement demonstrates how standardization can help provide guidance of a path forward for emerging industries and to help Canada achieve its net zero goals.” Chantal Guay, CEO, Standards Council of Canada

The National Workshop Agreement on Bioeconomy Development Opportunity Zones is publicly available online at no fee. To view in English, click here and to view in French, click here. Feedback to the Workshop Agreement is highly encouraged and accepted. Please share any and all responses in the comment section below, or email aryn@ecostrat.com.

Established in 1970 as a federal Crown corporation, the Standards Council of Canada (SCC) is Canada’s voice on standards and accreditation on the national and international stage. SCC works closely with a vast network of partners to promote the development of effective and efficient standards that protect the health, safety and well-being of Canadians while helping businesses prosper. As Canada’s leading accreditation organization, SCC creates market confidence at home and abroad by ensuring that conformity assessment bodies meet the highest national and international standards. SCC advances Canada’s interest on the international scene as a member of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) by connecting thousands of people to global networks and resources, opening a world of possibilities for Canadians and businesses.

The BDO Zone Initiative is an economic development platform that enables local communities to deploy powerful economic development tools – BDO Zone Ratings – to achieve the goal of driving, accelerating, and catalyzing biobased investment and commercial project development in BDO Zone-designated regions.

A BDO Zone rating is a standards-based technical risk assessment of biomass feedstock, supply chain, and infrastructure attributes of a region with respect to the feasibility and development potential of new biofuel, renewable chemical, biogas, bioproduct, or clean hydrogen plants. BDO Zone ratings are designed to help regions and communities attract new biobased project development and participate in the growing global bioeconomy by demonstrating the maturity of local biomass supply chains and whether or not they are developed enough to support biobased manufacturing without excessive risk.

For more information on the BDO Zone Initiative, please contact info@bdozone.org. To view all current and upcoming BDO Zone designations, visit www.bdozone.org or check out the BDO Zone LinkedIn page for all news and updates.

The Biomass Supply Group has 25 years of experience in sourcing and supplying more than 5 million tons of biomass feedstock for bioenergy, biofuel, and biochemical projects across North America. Its Advisory Group combines the BSCR Standards with powerful predictive analytics to understand and minimize supply chain risk.

Jordan Solomon is Chairman of the BDO Zone Initiative and President of Ecostrat. He has overseen the development and operation of biomass supply chains for more than 5,000,000 tons of feedstock over two decades for bioenergy, biofuel, and biochemical projects.