11.6.2 Wood Energy Supply Chain

11.6.2 Wood Energy Supply Chain

Wood fuels are available in a number of generic forms.  These include wood wastes, forest residues and energy crops.  Some wood fuels are processed to provide a higher quality and more user-friendly product such as wood pellets and wood chips.  There are considerable forestry plantations in the county. According to the Forest Service, 9.6% of the county was in forest cover in 2017, amounting to approximately 19,795 hectares.  In Kilkenny it is likely that forestry will provide the main source of biomass for the foreseeable future.