One of the most commonly used renewable energies is bioenergy. This includes energy derived from biomass which is living or recently living biological organisms.

There are three sources of bioenergy:

• Solid biomass, e.g. wood or charcoal, that is directly burned. It can be used for cooking or to produce electricity
• Biofuels made from biomass, e.g. crops (e.g., corn, palm oil) or crop residues (e.g., rice straw, groundnut shells…) by methods that thermal, chemical, or biochemical. Biofuels can be used for transportation or to produce electricity
• Biogas produced by bacteria that the anaerobically (without air) digest organic matter. E.g. dung from animals, sewage sludge, municipal solid waste. Biogas is comprised primarily of methane and carbon dioxide. It also contains smaller amounts of hydrogen sulphide, nitrogen, hydrogen, methylmercaptans and oxygen. Biogas can be used as a low-cost fuel for heating and cooking, or with a machine generate mechanical or electrical power

To generate electricity, generally each tonne of dry biomass can generate between 1 and 2 MWhe with efficiency in the range of 20 – 40%. In Liberia, biomass that could be used are palm oil, coconut, sugar cane and rubber wood, waste and various forms of crop or forestry residues.

In the tropical climate of Liberia the most desirable feedstocks for biofuels production—with the highest yield per land unit— can grow: oil palm, coconut, and sugarcane.