The energy transition towards renewables like solar and wind will bring about a surplus of renewable electricity. Here, we examine if using excess renewable energy in the pretreatment of lignocellulosic biomass can support the formation of energy communities in remote areas of Colombia or other developing countries. To this aim, two conventional pretreatment methods — steam explosion and ammonia fiber expansion — were compared with two alternative methods — reactive extrusion and mechanocatalysis by ball milling. Retrofitting indicators (i.e., energy cost and value-added) and energy efficiency ranges (i.e., the ratio of the total monomeric yields produced to the total energy consumption under optimistic and pessimistic scenarios) were determined for each process and contrasted with process safety, chemical safety, health, and environmental (SHE) indicators. The comparative analysis highlighted the economic advantages of conventional pretreatments when the objective is to use cellulose to produce bioethanol. However, retrofitting indicators and energy efficiency range suggested that reactive extrusion could be profitable under some scenarios, while mechanocatalysis could not be profitable due to its high energy consumption. The SHE indicators highlight the advantages of the alternative methods of not using high temperatures and pressurized reactors. Yet, the necessary use of catalysts can shift the balance, and SHE indicators suggested that an uncatalyzed steam explosion is the most benign pathway, closely followed by reactive extrusion. Nevertheless, reactive extrusion has fewer capital expenditures, which, combined with a surplus of renewable power and biomass, can consolidate energy communities in remote areas of developing countries.