Until the 1970s, renewable energy systems were widely considered minor and declining sources of energy (Maugh, 1972). Since then, tangible advances in technologies to produce a range of renewable energy products (see Pandey, 2009), along with the promise of jobs and greater aggregate value for rural assets (see Domac, Richards and Risovic, 2005) , “contributed significantly to revising this approach” (Cowan, 2002; Petroleum, 2009; Sims, Hastings, Schlamadinger, A. Taylor, & Smith, 2006). The change began at a slow but steady pace, driven primarily by the subsequent development of the economies of Southeast Asia and Brazil. However, it was only with the instability of this decade and the general increase in fuel prices, amid concerns of climate change (Cox, Betts, CD Jones, Spall, & Totterdell, 2000) and energy insecurity, that renewable energy systems have been “recognized as valuable”. alternatives for energy production by the developed world” (McKendry, 2002a; Sims et al., 2006). While policymakers have responded to these issues by introducing legal and financial instruments to support investment in renewable energy projects (REPs), capital markets have provided extensive funding for related research and development. Such measures allowed the United States to lead in renewable energy investment in 2008, having invested nearly $25 billion in the sector – or 20% of total global investment that year. “For the first time in recent history both the United States and the European Union have added more energy capacity from renewable sources than from fossil and nuclear (energy) combined” (Petroleum, 2009). Such a push to develop renewable energy projects has not been exclusive to wealthy nations, however. Increasing demand for REP is a worldwide phenomenon… middle of paper… during fluctuations in resource usage throughout the composition chain; thus enabling the identification of bottlenecks for efficient use of resources through comparison with observed industry standards. The analytical framework presented is formulated to be adaptable to all energy systems, however this thesis will focus on biomass-based REPs due to 1) the current relevant contextual relevance of this type of renewable energy, 2) its comprehensive production chain which makes it suitable for the mathematical modeling approach subsequently adopted, and 3) the inevitable need for scope, as will be explained below. However, this document is neither intended to advocate nor endorse biomass-based energy. Two prototype applications of the presented framework are then performed using primary data collected from grid-connected biomass energy plants located in Brazil.