A research on geospatial suitability and cost analysis modelling for energy crop agriculture: Eskisehir province switchgrass case

Global energy demand is constantly increasing. The search for a new generation fuel that will minimize the concerns about climate change and create an alternative to fossil fuels has accelerated the energy crop agriculture that offers a clean energy source. From this point of view, the doctoral thesis study focuses on the cultivation of switchgrass, one of the efficient energy crops that is not yet sufficiently known in Turkey and includes three basic stages to determine the suitable locations and costs for the cultivation of switchgrass in Eskişehir. In the first stage, the cultivation possibilities of switchgrass in Eskişehir were determined by weighted overlay method, and in the second stage, cost analysis modeling was carried out to determine the product sales price by using cost items such as total costs, extra costs, and profit. The third phase of the study presents a novel approach for the spatial integration of the findings determined within the scope of the first and second phases. The results have revealed that 70% of the study area is in the high suitable (4) and 30% in the medium suitable (3) classes. for the cultivation of switchgrass on a five level suitability scale. With the cost analysis model, it has been determined that the optimum land size for the cultivation of switchgrass is 50 ha, and a product sales price of 24 USD/ton can be obtained with 23% profitability. The results of the spatial cost analysis, on the other hand, have been effective in determining the profit and sales prices that will change specifically according to the characteristics of the land. This doctoral thesis, which has been conducted in accordance with the energy policies in Turkey, is aimed at the presentation of an exemplary approach and methodology and contribution to the limited literature in the field.