The conditions for the emergence of a bioenergy sector.

Summary This thesis work focuses on the economic conditions necessary for the emergence of a bioenergy filière through torrefied biomass. This research was conducted following two complementary approaches, one normative, focusing on the study of the behavior of the actors in this filière, and the other positive, focusing on the conditions for the existence of the torrefied biomass market. We study the values that the offreur and the requester associate with the economic decision to invest in new energy technologies and to purchase biomass. We measured the demand of the energy sectors afin to confront it with the offre and deduce an exchange price based on the flexibility of the industrialists in their production process and the environmental constraints they are subject to. The thesis consists of three papers (Chapters 2, 3, and 4 in English) and two confidential studies (Chapters 1 and 5 in French). Chapter 1 presents a qualitative field survey conducted at the national level, identificating potential applicants and determining the techno-economic factors that may influence it. Chapter 2 studies the investment and production decision of an ambiguity-averse agent facing market uncertainties such as the number of players and the effet of competition from other fossil fuels on the selling price of its biomass. We observe asymmetric effects of the two uncertainties on the optimal amounts of production and show theoretically and then numerically that ambiguity aversion tends to decrease the optimal levels of investment and production. Chapter 3 presents the model we developed to estimate the penetration of pre-processed biomass in the power generation market as a function of modeled climate and energy policies. We derive the demand function for torrefied biomass. In Chapter 4, we develop a partial equilibrium model of offre from the torrefaction sector and biomass demand from the power and raffinage sectors to estimate an equilibrium trading price of torrefied biomass as a function of the long-run CO2 price. Enfin, this positive approach is complemented by a logistic study presented in Chapter 5 afin determining the optimal supply strategy and size of pretreatment units located in a biomass production basin. The research work carried out allows for the development of recommendations for investors and institutions in charge of bioenergy development.