2014 Algae Industry Survey
Conducted by the Algae Biomass OrganizationMarch, 2014
www.algaebiomass.org | (877) 531-5512 | [email protected]
Responses Across the Industry285 respondents from across the industry
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90 I work for an organization that is:
A company that produces or researches algae-de-rived products (fuel, feed, nutraqceuticals, bioplas-tics, chemicals, etc.)
A research laboratory with government affiliation
A university or college
An equipment or materials provider for the algae industry
A company that supports the use of algae in industry (transportation, consumer products, chemicals, etc.)
An equipment or materials provider for the algae industry
A government agency or department (national or state)
A supplier of services to the algae industry (legal services, accounting, other consultant, etc.)
OtherOrganization Type
Num
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f Res
pons
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Survey Highlights: Significant Optimism
• Algae fuels, feeds, plastics and other products 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.
Industry insiders broadly believe that:
On Track to Price Competitiveness• More than 83% say it is likely that algae based fuels will by cost
competitive by 2020.• More than 40% of producers say the price will be below $5.00 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 2013 2014
Extremely likely 13% 12% 15%
Very likely 22% 26% 19%
Moderately likely 34% 29% 29%
Slightly likely 20% 24% 20%
Not at all likely 10% 9% 16%
On Track to Price Competitiveness
Less than $1.50/gallon; 8%
$1.50-$3.00/gallon; 20%
$3.00-$5.00/gallon; 14%
$5.00-$10.00/gal-
lon; 18%
Not applicable/not
sure; 40%
To the best of your knowledge, can you project what your cost/gallon of algae-based fuel will be in 2020?
Industry Pursuing Full Range of Algae Products
Does your company or organization produce any of the following algal products? (select all that apply)
Producers 2014
Oils for use in food products 19.50%Feeds (fish and/or farm) 39.10%Bioplastics 11.90%Chemicals 15.20%Nutritional products or nutraceuticals 35.80%Fuels 33.60%Fertilizers 18.40%Biomass for energy or other uses 35.80%
Non-food specialty oils (cosmetics, lubricants, etc.) 15.20%Other 21.70%
Competitive Feeds from Algae
Extremely likely; 24.8%
Very likely; 40.3%
Moderately likely; 23.9%
Slightly likely; 8.0% Unlikely; 2.9%
How likely is it that cost-competitive algae-based feeds in agri-culture or aquaculture will be commercially available by 2020?
97% say that algae based feeds will be commercially available in 2020.
More than 95% say that algae derived plastics or chemicals will be commercially available.
Competitive Plastics and Chemicals
Extremely likely; 13.3%
Very likely; 34.3%Moderately likely; 35.2%
Slightly likely; 12.9%Unlikely; 4.3%
How likely is it that cost-competitive bioplastics or bio-chemicals derived from algae will be commercially available
by 2020?
Capacity Continues to Expand
• Production expansion is predicted; More than 70% of producers expect to expand production this year.
• 29% said they would expand with new facilities.
• 29% reported expansion in existing facilities.
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
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?
Start of 2014 End of 2014 End of 2020
1-50 58% 49% 19%
11-50 24% 33% 28%
51-100 3% 3% 15%
101-500 5% 5% 12%
500+ 0% 0% 3%
Not sure 9% 9% 20%
Supportive Policy Accelerates Growth
86% of employers say better federal policy support would accelerate hiring.
Extremely likely23%
Very likely29%
Moderately likely22%
Slightly likely13%
Not at all likely14%
Employers, how likely is it that you would accelerate hiring with better federal policy support of the algae industry?
Most Critical Technical Challenges
1. Cost-efficient production systems
2. Harvesting and extraction systems
3. Finding/developing the right strains
Top Policy Today
The most important federal policies in building a robust algae industry in effect today:
#1 Research and development grants
#2 Tax credits and/or incentives
#3 Renewable Fuel Standard
Top Policy Tomorrow
#1 Regulatory approvals for algae-derived products
#2 Regulatory approvals for siting facilities
#3 Climate legislation
The most important federal policies in building a robust algae industry not in effect today:
www.algaebiomass.org | (877) 531-5512 | [email protected]
