Bioenergy
Bioenergy is heat or electricity produced using biomass or gaseous and liquid fuels with a biological origin such as biomethane produced from biomass. Biomass is any material of biological origin that is used as fuel, such as wood pellets, plants and animal waste from farms, sewage and some waste from landfill.
We want to see the resources which are available to the bioenergy sector being used where they can best support Scotland’s journey towards net zero. This means that use of bioresources need to be prioritised to where they can be most effective in reducing emissions and where there is greatest need for alternatives to fossil fuels.
In the longer term, the finite bioresources which are available should be prioritised towards applications with carbon capture, wherever that becomes feasible.
Bioenergy policy statement
We published the draft bioenergy policy statement for consultation in March 2024 which sets out the role that we see bioenergy having in Scotland's journey to net zero. It identifies what we consider to be the priority uses of bioenergy, and the opportunities and potential challenges related to scaling up its use.
We published the consultation analysis in May 2025.
This will inform the development of the final version of the bioenergy policy statement, which we will publish in due course.