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The economics of growing short rotation coppice in the uplands of mid-Wales and an economic comparison with sheep production

Heaton, R. J., Randerson, Peter Frederick ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2744-3122 and Slater, Frederick Maurice 1999. The economics of growing short rotation coppice in the uplands of mid-Wales and an economic comparison with sheep production. Biomass and Bioenergy 17 (1) , pp. 59-71.

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Abstract

There are over 900 000 ha of upland agricultural land in Wales that might be used for growing short rotation willow coppice (SRC). Current land-use is primarily sheep production, and there is much uncertainty surrounding future livestock subsidies in these areas. Recent proposals have indicated a potentially large market for wood chip in the form of a wood powered electricity plant proposed for mid-Wales. Using a spreadsheet model this paper evaluates the economics of growing short rotation coppice in the uplands and compares the returns (in the form of Net Present Values) with sheep farming, over 25 years. Various options are considered: liming at establishment, chip price, yield of SRC and in¯uence of discount rate. Currently sheep farming produces far greater pro®ts than SRC (NPV £848 ha ÿ1 compared to £5155 ha ÿ1). This is based solely on subsidy, and when all subsides are removed SRC becomes more pro®table than sheep farming at a chip price of £40 odt ÿ1 and a yield of at least 6 odt ha ÿ1 yr ÿ1. At lower chip prices, £35 odt ÿ1, a yield of 8 odt ha ÿ1 yr ÿ1 is needed to give greater incomes than that available from sheep. Proposed discounted subsidies for SRC have been calculated based on chip price and yield, and vary from £2199 ha ÿ1 to £4858 ha ÿ1, compared to the current sheep subsidy of £4190 ha ÿ1. We conclude that the future of SRC in the uplands is dependent on future sheep subsidy levels and the wood chip market, but a yield of at least 8 odt ha ÿ1 yr ÿ1 is acceptable within these other constraints.

Item Type: Article
Date Type: Publication
Status: Published
Schools: Biosciences
Subjects: S Agriculture > S Agriculture (General)
Publisher: Elsevier
ISSN: 0961-9534
Last Modified: 24 Oct 2022 12:02
URI: https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/50243

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