North American Forest Biomass Supply Chains for Efficient Bioenergy Production

Forest bioenergy holds significant potential for North American decarbonization and energy security, yet persistently high logistics costs, feedstock quality variability, and geographic dispersion of biomass resources continue to constrain commercial viability. This review asks what it will take for forest bioenergy supply chains to achieve economic and operational lift-off, identifying key bottlenecks and the most promising pathways to scale. We systematically review 237 peer-reviewed studies and technical reports with the majority published between 2000 and 2025, covering feedstock types ranging from logging residues and woody biomass to short rotation woody crops, and end-products spanning solid biofuels, heat and power, thermochemical products, and sustainable aviation fuel. The literature consistently identifies delivered cost, feedstock quality control, and the geographic mismatch between biomass supply and conversion facility location as the three primary barriers to sector viability. Depot-based preprocessing, cascading utilization strategies, and participatory landowner contracting emerge as the most effective near-term solutions for improving supply chain economics and mobilizing economically recoverable biomass. At the frontier, AI-enabled optimization, digital twin modeling, and integrated biorefinery configurations show strong potential to manage spatial variability and unlock the scale economies on which commercial viability depends. Translating these advances into practice will require stable, long-term policy signals and coordinated investment across the full supply chain.