Straw fermentation offers the advantage to provide energy for the electricity, the heat, and/or the mobility sector, while contributing in parallel to close nutrient and humus cycles in agriculture. In this study, the state of technology of straw biogas fermentation is assessed. The results show that the selection of an adequate pretreatment process is one of the main key factors for a successful provision of biogas from straw. The subsequent assessment of three pretreatment options (i.e., mechanical treatment, steam explosion, alkaline treatment) shows that a mechanical pretreatment is economically more viable than the other options, even though the expected biogas yield is clearly lower. This is mainly because chemical or thermal pretreatment results in high investment cost due to high pressure or long residence times. [Figure not available: see fulltext.]
