Can amber and resin be a viable fuel source (for Steampunk civilization)?

Long story short, this civilization found very little oil and natural gas in their world (or maybe they ran out of both), but there are huge deposits of amber and special pine trees which produce rather energetic resin (source of that amber).

Let's assume that both amber and resin are not unlike the ones we have on Earth. Can they be used as viable fuel sources for a steam engine?

update: Ok, let me ask a little more specific.

I have a world with little to no oil and natural gas, but with big reserves of amber, some coal (there is a lot of amber => there were a lot of pines at some point in a distant past => they left coal) and pine trees that produce resin.

What would serve as a better fuel source for a steampunk civilization (late XIX century, if compared with our history):

• coal (won't last more than a century or two)
• amber (way more than coal, but is it as good as coal?)
• wood (slowly renewable)
• or pine resin (renewable)?

posted over 7 years ago

Mr Scapegrace‭

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