Agrivoltaics – What is it? Why do we need it?

Agrivoltaics is an increasingly important development in solar photovoltaics, and we should be paying attention.

Agrivoltaics refers to a new area of study and practical application involving solar photovoltaics and agriculture.

There are massive synergies to be found between solar PV and agriculture ranging from land use efficiency, to protection of crops, to production of energy from new sources.

The first international conference on Agrivoltaics was held in August 2020 in Perpignan, France. It was a joint venture by the French National Institute for Agricultural Research (INRA), the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE, and PSE Conferences & Consulting GmbH.

Since the conference, guidelines on Agrivoltaics have been published by the Fraunhofer Institute in Germany.

At the core of this technological innovation is intelligent light management. The objective is to design and implement photovoltaic systems which complement food production by the intelligent application of light and shade.

Benefits of Agrivoltaics

Agrivoltaics has the potential to …

– increase land use efficiency

– protect food production from extreme weather events

– produce an additional income stream for farms

– meet future energy demands

Studies are underway in Germany and numerous other countries as to the current and potential benefits of agrivoltaics.

Many commercial projects have been undertaken in this field to date.

Agrivoltaics offers huge potential to the agriculture sector to embrace new methods and new income streams and increase the overall land use efficiency.

Please contact us, if you have a project or an interest in the application of agrivoltaics in your local area.

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