Until the 1970s, renewable energy systems were largely considered minor and declining sources of energy (Maugh, 1972). Since then, palpable technological advances have produced a range of renewable energy products (see Pandey, 2009), along with the promise of jobs and higher overall value for rural activities (see Domac, Richards and Risovic , 2005), “contributed greatly to revising this framework” (Cowan, 2002; Petroleum, 2009; Sims, Hastings, Schlamadinger, A. Taylor and Smith, 2006). Change began at a slow but steady pace, driven primarily by the successive development of economies. from Southeast Asia and Brazil. However, it was only with the instability of this decade and the general rise in fuel prices, amid concerns about climate change (Cox, Betts, CD Jones, Spall, & Totterdell, 2000) and energy insecurity, that renewable energy systems have been “recognized as valuable”. alternatives for electricity generation in the developed world” (McKendry, 2002a; Sims et al., 2006). While their policymakers have responded to these problems by introducing legal and financial instruments supporting investments in renewable energy projects (REPs), their capital markets have provided sufficient financing for the corresponding R&D. Such moves helped the United States take the lead in renewable energy investment in 2008, having pumped nearly $25 billion into the sector – or 20% of total global investment that year. “For the first time in recent history, the United States and the European Union added more electricity capacity from renewable sources than from fossil and nuclear energy combined” (Petroleum, 2009). Such a push for the development of renewable energy projects has not yet occurred. however, it is reserved for rich countries. The increase in demand for REP is a global phenomenon...... middle of paper ...... which leads to fluctuations in the use of assets throughout its composition chain; thereby enabling the identification of bottlenecks to the efficient utilization of assets when compared to industry observed standards. The analytical framework presented is formulated to be adaptable to all energy systems, however this thesis will focus on biomass-based PWRs for 1) current contextual relevance. of this type of renewable energy, 2) its complete production chain which makes it suitable for the mathematical modeling approach adopted later, and 3) the inevitable need for scope, as we will explain next. However, this article is not intended to argue for or against energy based on biomass. Two prototype applications of the presented framework are then carried out using primary data collected from grid-connected biomass energy plants located in Brazil..