The AgriSolar Bulletin: April - June Edition

India

Major News Highlights
Meet The IITian Growing Organic Food Under India's Largest Agrivoltaic Solar Plant

In Madhya Pradesh, Anand Jain's 16-acre farm utilises agrivoltaics to produce crops and solar power without sacrificing arable land. This innovative dual-use technology provides a sustainable farming model and supplies about 25,000 units of electricity to the grid daily. Read More
Parliamentary Estimates Committee Reviews PM-KUSUM and PM Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana at Agrivoltaics Site in Issapur, Delhi

The session featured a comparative analysis between ground-mounted solar systems and stilt-based agrivoltaic models, highlighting key advantages in terms of cost-effectiveness and land-use efficiency - critical pillars of the PM-KUSUM vision. During the visit, the Committee members also engaged in interactions with local farmers, gaining firsthand insight into the transformative role of solar energy in rural livelihoods. Read More
Ricoh implements Group's first renewable energy from agrivoltaics offsite Power Purchase Agreement power plant in Japan

Ricoh's headquarters currently operates on 100% renewable energy supplied by UPDATER. By partially switching to renewable energy from the agrivoltaics plant, Ricoh aims to deepen its environmental impact while further contributing to local sustainability. Read More
What are Farmers Growing Under Solar Panels in Their Farms? Understanding Agrivoltaics

The Parbhani setup - part of a 50 MW Renew Power solar installation by SunSeed APV, Kanoda Energy, and GIZ German Development Cooperation - is one of the few pilot projects paving the way for an agrisolar boom in India. Farmers are stakeholders in agrivoltaic projects. The goal is to ensure that they get a better income than they did earlier, but without the risk.Read More
Solarizing Irrigation in India

India's agricultural sector is the country's third-largest consumer of electricity. State governments often subsidize electricity for farmers, but these subsidies place immense financial strain on the electricity distribution companies (discoms) and state governments. The Government of India's Kisan Urja Suraksha evam Utthaan Mahaabhiyan (KUSUM) scheme is at the forefront of promoting solar irrigation.Read More
IIT-Roorkee Alumnus Anand Jain Builds India's Largest Agrivoltaic Solar Farm, Merging Clean Energy with Agriculture

Jain is the founder of what is now India's largest agrivoltaic solar farm, an expansive project in Madhya Pradesh that overlays photovoltaic panels above actively cultivated farmland. The model allows sunlight to be harvested both as energy and food - marking a breakthrough in the dual-use of India's increasingly scarce land resources. Read More
Understanding Agrivoltaics What are farmers growing under solar panels in their farms?

In Maharashtra's Parbhani, hope takes form in a unique dimension - 5 acres, to be precise. The Parbhani setup - part of a 50 MW Renew Power solar installation by SunSeed APV, Kanoda Energy, and GIZ German Development Cooperation - is one of the few pilot projects paving the way for an agrisolar boom in India. While the concept has found success internationally, it is still nascent here.Read More
Micro-Agrivoltaics: Hiding in plain sight

As India explores the promise of agrivoltaics, small and marginal farmers are cultivating crops beneath solar panels without formal support or mainstream recognition. Researchers at the International Water Management Institute-Tata Water Policy Program (ITP) argue that this under-recognized practice of 'Micro-Agrivoltaics' is a powerful opportunity to scale clean energy while boosting agricultural productivity and deserves greater attention and systematic study.Read More
Bihar farmers begin food & energy production via agrivoltaics in Gaya

The Tata Cornell Institute for Agriculture and Nutrition (TCI) and Preservation and Proliferation of Rural Resources and Nature (PRAN) have set up an agrivoltaics site in Bihar's Gaya district. The first agrivoltaics site to operate in Bihar, the TCI-PRAN site, located in the village of Nawada in Shargati block, demonstrates the potential for agrivoltaics to help lower greenhouse gas emissions from farming while increasing productivity.Read More
Assam targets 3500 MW solar surge, with strong push for rooftop and agri-voltaics

The Government of Assam has notified the Assam Solar Power Promotion Policy 2025, setting an ambitious target of developing a minimum of 3,500 MW of solar capacity by 2030. The comprehensive policy, effective immediately and valid until March 31, 2030, aims to position Assam as a regional energy hub while reducing dependency on fossil fuels.Read More
Sowing sunshine: Can agriphotovoltaics offer a path to doubling farmers' income?

In recent years, the contribution of agriculture and allied sectors to economic output has declined, with farmers' real incomes virtually stagnating. This article demonstrates that new ideas such as agriphotovoltaics, which combine solar power with crop cultivation, have the potential to boost farmers' incomes while also enhancing land-use efficiency and combating climate change.Read More
New study estimates India's solar potential at 10,830 GW

A new study by The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) has estimated India's total solar potential at 10,830 gigawatts (GW), significantly higher than the previous 2014 assessment of 748 GW by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE). The study revisits conventional solar deployment areas such as barren and unculturable lands and explores additional avenues to expand the country's solar potential.Read More
Union Agriculture Minister Shri Shivraj Singh Chouhan participates in 'National Agro-RE Summit 2025'

Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Shri Shivraj Singh Chouhan attended the National Agriculture-Renewable Energy Conference 2025 organised by the National Solar Energy Federation of India (NSEFI) in New Delhi. On this occasion, he released the federation's report and annual information book on agriculture and renewable energy. The conference was organised to push for dialogue and collaboration among policymakers, experts, and farmers regarding the integration of renewable energy in the agriculture sector.Read More

Global

Major News Highlights
Agrivoltaics looks to revolutionize global food production

Agrivoltaics works by easing the tug-of-war between clean power and agriculture. It also plays a role in climate goals. Studies suggest these systems lower greenhouse gas emissions while boosting crop health and offering a stable income for farmers.This method is also highly adaptable. Read More
Agrivoltaics for kiwis

Volta Group and Richel Groupa European manufacturer of greenhouses and flexible-cover storage solutions, have jointly built a PV greenhouse hosting a kiwi plantation in Drome department, southeastern France.Read More
Farmers discover innovative new way their land can pull double duty

Agrivoltaic setups protect farmers' livelihoods while giving them a new, more stable source of income.Farmers maintain the land, ensuring the panels aren't blocked by overgrown vegetation. The sheep and cattle take care of that with their snacking. Beekeeping farms, greenhouses, and crop farms can all operate with solar panels above them. Read More
Agrivoltaics study reveals potential solution to land competition between agriculture and solar energy

The study reveals that between 22% and 35% of non-irrigated agricultural land around the world could host agrivoltaic systems while continuing to produce food. It presents an opportunity to integrate two basic needs without compromising one or the other.Read More
Multi-constraint modeling for agrivoltaics

Researchers at Cornell University in the U.S. have developed a novel optimization model for agrivoltaic site design and benefits, which was demonstrated using irrigation-optimization relative to economic and environmental goals.Read More
Takamiya launches vertical mounting solution for agrivoltaics, areas with little space

The Japanese company said its new vertical mounting system is ideal for farmland, regions with heavy snowfall, along factory fences, and in parking areas. Vertical PV installations provide more power yield early in the morning and before sunset compared to conventional solar arrays. Read More
Massive 2-GW Agrivoltaic Project Aims To Restore Desert In China

China has begun leaning on agrivoltaic projects to help tamp down dust storms in its vast deserts, halt the march of desertification, and restore vegetation - while generating clean electricity for local communities and industries, too. The strategy appears to be working. The latest news involves a new 2-gigawatt agrivoltaic installation in Inner Mongolia, due for completion later this year.Read More
Trinasolar And Lodestone Team Up To Launch New Agrivoltaics Solar Project In New Zealand

Located along the Waiotahe River in the Opotiki District, the project has been developed on a former dairy farm and aims to deliver clean, renewable energy to the region while maintaining the land's agricultural use through sheep grazing beneath the solar modules. Read More
A 'Mammoth' Agrivoltaic Project Crosses the Political Divide in Indiana

Solar industry advocates are facing new hurdles at every level of government, from local town halls to the White House. But the economic case for solar energy can help developers win community support, regardless of political affiliations. The new Mammoth Solar project in the red state of Indiana is one example.Read More
Bulgaria high court rules agrivoltaics development should not be at the expense of agriculture

The implementation of simplified procedures to promote the production of renewable energy should not be at the expense of agricultural land, which is a limited and non-renewable resource.Read More
New simulation framework achieves higher dual land use efficiency in agrivoltaics

Researchers in Italy have conceived new agrivoltaic modeling for agrivoltaics that includes crop yield response curves for multiple crops. Once the electricity production coming from the PV modules is also assessed, the performance metrics for the agrivoltaic system as a whole are obtained.Read More
Scientists Say: Agrivoltaics

The word "agrivoltaics" is a mash-up of "agriculture" and "photovoltaics". Agriculture refers to farming. Photovoltaics describes technology that makes electricity from sunlight. Solar panels are one example. Solar farms use solar panels to generate clean energy. But these farms take up a lot of land. Farms that grow crops and raise livestock use a lot of land too. Agrivoltaics saves space by allowing farmers to harvest electricity and food from the same land.Read More
Six-year test field shows agrivoltaics can be critical for rice productivity

Scientists in Japan have conducted a field experiment in rice plantations hosting agrivoltaics systems and have found that rice growth can be affected by reduced biomass and reduced panicle number. However, their analysis has also shown that gross return in lowland rice agrivoltaics can be 14 times higher than rice growth without PV.Read More
Fraunhofer ISE testing agrivoltaics on standard weather protection covers

Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE and weather protection specialist VOEN Vohringer are testing an unconventional agrivoltaic system on a cherry orchard in Upper Swabia, Germany. The system aims to reduce the cost of agrivoltaics.Read More
Harnessing the power of agrivoltaics: the future of sustainable land use

With the increasing pressure to decarbonise the energy system while preserving arable land and biodiversity, agrivoltaics is quickly becoming a vital pathway towards sustainable development. A new report from the IEA PVPS Task 13 lays out a compelling vision for how solar energy and agriculture can not only coexist but thrive together. Read More
Scaling agrivoltaics: planning, legal, and market pathways to readiness

Agrivoltaics, which integrate solar photovoltaics with diverse agricultural activities on shared land, can play a pivotal role in advancing global decarbonization and agricultural innovation. Several European Union (EU) countries, states in the United States (US), and Asia Pacific nations are increasingly targeting the development of agrivoltaics.Read More
Are Agrivoltaics Gaining Public Support? Survey Says Yes

Overall, this study still brings an additional element to keep developing and improving agrivoltaics options: not only could it be more easily integrated into farms and create a double use for farmlands, instead of replacing them, but it could also improve the public perception of solar farms overall, helping boost the adoption of renewable energies.Read More
Study by the University of Bonn sees great potential for solar cells on grain fields or pastures

The results show that agrivoltaics met with much higher acceptance- regardless of the scenario shown: Almost 44 percent would pay more for electricity from these areas; however, only 29 percent would be willing to do so for normal solar parks on open land. Just 2.9 percent would also finance measures to prevent agrivoltaics out of their own pockets- the figure was 4.8 percent for conventional parks.Read More
Fraunhofer ISE creates startup for agrivoltaics

Researchers at Fraunhofer ISE have joined forces with an external team to establish Diveo GmbH. The startup will support agricultural businesses in the planning, construction, and monitoring of agrivoltaic facilities connected to battery energy storage. Two Fraunhofer ISE alumni, both with prior spinoff experience, are developing the new Diveo venture.Read More
NREL's Agrivoltaics Research: Combining Solar Energy With Agriculture (Text Version)

The video cuts between people working in the gardens under and around solar panels at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and close-ups of the plants being grown.Read More
Agrivoltaics offer more advantages in arid regions, new research finds

New research from France has compared the performance of agrivoltaics in Spain and the Netherlands and have concluded that the former - a dry region with high solar radiation levels - offer more technical advantages over the latter, which is characterized by abundant rainfall and lower solar radiation.Read More
Agrivoltaics Benefit from Comparatively High Acceptance

Photovoltaic systems are increasingly being installed not only on roofs but also on open land. This does not always meet with citizens' approval. What is known as agrivoltaics (Agri-PV), however, is viewed more favorably, as researchers at the University of Bonn have now been able to show. In this case, the solar cells are installed in spaces used for agriculture - such as on pastures or as a canopy over grapevines. According to a survey of almost 2,000 people, this form enjoys much higher acceptance than normal solar parks. The study has been published in the journal "Land Use Policy."Read More
The rise of vertical agrivoltaics

Next2Sun AG executives spoke with pv magazine at Intersolar Europe 2025 on the growing momentum of agrivoltaics. The company doubled annual installations to 40 MW in 2024, underscoring vertical PV's value in markets like Italy, Germany and France.Read More
All agrivoltaic system designs at a glance

Researchers in Sweden and Italy analyzed the economics of one-axis, vertical, and elevated PV systems for agrivoltaic applications, finding that overhead agrivoltaic systems may perform better the further south they are installed. The discounted payback period and levelized cost of electricity were also calculated and compared.Read More
New paper highlights benefits of coupling agrivoltaics with retiring groundwater rights in Nevada

The paper shares a study in Diamond Valley, Nevada, in which the partners explored the viability and socioeconomic benefits and tradeoffs of retiring groundwater rights while at the same time implementing agrivoltaics.Read More
Agrivoltaics With Sheep & Solar Benefit All - Especially The Sheep!

A study conducted at a Lightsourcebp solar farm in Wellington, Australia, followed more than 1700 sheep, half of which were raised in a traditional environment and half of which were allowed to roam beneath the solar panels. The study results showed the co-location of solar farming with sheep grazing is not negatively impacting wool production, even in the case of pre-existing high-quality standards. Some parameters even indicated an improvement in wool quality, although conclusive benefits require further long term measurement.Read More
Agrivoltaics Make The Leap From Rural To Urban Farming

Urban farms can be anchors of community resiliency, supporting food availability, economic opportunities, and educational activities, too. Now, the City of Detroit has embarked on a plan to add clean power to the list of benefits. The Solar Neighborhoods program incorporates agrivoltaics, enabling the city move forward with decarbonization goals for municipal operations. Partners in the project already anticipate that it will provide a model for similar programs in cities across the US.Read More
BlueWave Advances Agrivoltaics In Massachusetts, Blending Solar Energy With Farming To Support Rural Communities

BlueWave, a solar energy company based in the Northeast U.S., is leading the way in demonstrating how agrivoltaics can be implemented effectively. The company has developed two dual-use solar sites in Palmer and Dighton, Massachusetts, which have been operational since 2023. Together, these projects generate 5.7 megawatts of direct current (MWDC) across 34 acres. These sites now support a mix of solar infrastructure, crop production, and livestock grazing, allowing agriculture and clean energy generation to coexist on the same land.Read More
Sungrow Supports AGL in Advancing Agrivoltaics in Australia, Setting a Benchmark for Sustainable Farming

As the agricultural sector embraces clean energy to enhance sustainability and resilience, Sungrow has collaborated with renowned energy provider AGL Energy to power the Kerarbury almond farm in Griffith, New South Wales. By integrating state-of-the-art storage technology with solar energy, the project marks a significant step toward reducing reliance on fossil fuels while ensuring a stable, cost-effective, and sustainable energy supply for local farms.Read More
What are the Key Benefits and Challenges of Agrivoltaics?

Agrivoltaics presents a viable approach to using land more efficiently and reducing competition between agriculture and energy production, particularly in regions facing rising demand for food and clean energy. However, it also presents several challenges, including technical issues, high initial costs, and unclear government rules or policies.Read More
MSU researchers to explore viability of agrivoltaics

Michigan State University (MSU) researchers and MSU Extension educators are evaluating the potential of agrivoltaics - which combines agricultural operations with solar energy production - in Michigan.Read More
Cero brings live 48-MWp agrivoltaic park in Italy

Cero Generation said on Friday has put on stream its 48-MWp Castrum photovoltaic (PV) park in the Italian region of Lazio, a project that combines solar power production and agricultural activities.Read More
Grazing, growing, and making electricity: Agrivoltaics Demo Day

Agrivoltaics is gaining attention across the West as an option to meet food and energy needs while maximizing land efficiency. Those attending the demo day witnessed the innovation of this new approach at Jack's Solar Garden Longmont, a national leader in dual-use solar research and education.Read More
Agrivoltaics Market for Sustainable Agriculture and Solar Energy | Driven by Land Optimization, Farmer Income, and Smart Irrigation Integration

Agrivoltaics Market reached US $ 4.32 billion in 2024 and is expected to reach US $ 8.41 billion by 2032, growing with a CAGR of 8.68% during the forecast period 2025-2032. The Agrivoltaics Market report by DataM Intelligence provides comprehensive insights and analysis on key market trends, growth opportunities, and emerging challenges.Read More
Agrivoltaics for cherries

Switzerland's Energie 360 degree and solar tech specialist Insolight have agreed to build a 1,300-panel agrivoltaic plant on a cherry farm in Leuggern, Switzerland. The facility will combine crop protection and dynamic light management. Switzerland's Insolight have revealed plans to install 1,300 solar modules, each with a nominal power of 600 W, at an agrivoltaic facility spanning 12,000 square meters of farmland in Leuggern, Canton Aargau.Read More
The Different Types of Agrivoltaic Systems

Agrivoltaics is the combination of solar energy production and farming on the same land. This approach helps tackle problems like land scarcity and climate change while providing food and energy sustainably. By using photovoltaic (PV) technology alongside agriculture, agrivoltaic systems make better use of land. This article discusses the different types of agrivoltaic systems, their design principles, benefits, and challenges.Read More
Sheep Will Make Room For 500,000 Honeybees In New Agrivoltaic Project

The US agriculture industry is facing a tsunami of misfortune between trade wars, climate impacts, and a fresh round of colony collapse disorder that decimated the honeybee population last year. In one bright spot, new agrivoltaic projects demonstrate that solar energy, crops, and livestock can coexist on the same land, creating new opportunities for farmers to earn revenue while preserving the land from development into shopping malls, housing developments, fulfillment centers and the like.Read More
Agrivoltaics & The Underdogs Of The Natural World

Fan favorite Ryan Reynolds is out with a new nature documentary series for National Geographic under the self-explanatory title Underdogs, which promises to expose certain members of the fish, mammal, and insect kingdoms to, well, exposure. It's biodiversity as only Ryan Reynolds can do it. Of course, the series also provides CleanTechnica with an opportunity to recap the biodiversity benefits emerging from the field of agrivoltaics, so here we go.Read More
How Agrivoltaics Is Changing the Future of U.S. Farmland

Farmers across the U.S. are navigating an increasingly complex operating environment, marked by rising costs, unpredictable markets, and mounting climate pressures. In response, agrivoltaics-integrating solar energy production with ongoing agricultural use-has emerged as a practical path to diversify income without taking land out of production.Read More
How Oman is embracing agrivoltaics for a sustainable future?

Beneath the bright Omani sun, a quiet transformation is taking root. Fields that once lay exposed to the harsh desert heat may soon be shaded by rows of solar panels - not as a replacement for agriculture, but as its ally. This is agrivoltaics: a forward-thinking approach where farming and solar energy generation go hand in hand, promising a new model of land use for arid regions like Oman.Read More
Solar panels may boost crop yields, per ISU research

New research from Iowa State University suggests that vegetables can thrive under solar panels, with some even growing better than those in control plots with full sunlight.Read More
US solar grazing undergoing rapid growth

The scale of livestock grazing in agrivoltaic installations is much larger than previously understood, according to the first solar grazing census by the US National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and the American Solar Grazing Association.Read More
Massive new facility will bring low-cost power to thousands of homes: 'A great win-win'

According to Electrek, the Mammoth Solar project, which was developed by Doral Renewables and constructed by Bechtel, is located in northern Indiana. As Bechtel reported, it's "one of the largest solar facilities in the U.S." and will play an important role in bringing clean, affordable energy to residents across Indiana.Read More
Solar energy project shifts to agrivoltaic model following government opposition

A major energy project proposed by Cyrus Solar Thermal Ltd on state-owned land in Cyprus has undergone significant redesign in recent weeks, shifting from a 180MW photovoltaic park with 40MW/80MWh storage units to an agrivoltaic park combining energy production with agricultural and livestock activities.Read More
Te Herenga o Te Ra combines solar power and sheep grazing

One of New Zealand's latest and largest agrivoltaics farm Te Herenga o Te Ra is delivering clean renewable energy while preserving the land's agricultural value for sheep grazing under the modules.Read More
ISU combining solar farms with production agriculture

There's a unique form of agriculture being studied at Iowa State University: "agrivoltaics," which is the crossroads between solar power production and farming practices. At the Alliant Energy Solar Farm south of Ames, they're trying to figure out which ag practices will integrate the best solar production. Michael Killewald, agrivoltaics outreach coordinator at Iowa State University, said the primary focus is on the energy production.Read More
Italy extends construction deadline for agrivoltaic tender

Italy has extended the construction deadline for 1.5 GW of awarded agrivoltaic projects to June 30, 2026, after developers failed to meet the original timeline.Read More
Agrivoltaics Offers Bright Future for Land Use in Northern Colorado

Local farmers, researchers, and land managers gathered on June 10 at Jack's Solar Garden in Longmont to explore how agriculture and solar energy production can successfully share the same space - a practice known as agrivoltaics. The event, titled Solar Grazing and Growing: Agrivoltaics Demo Day, was hosted by Larimer County CSU Extension and AgriSolar Consulting and drew more than 40 participants from across Northern Colorado and beyond.Read More
Olds College to hold first-ever agrivoltaics conference

The Olds College of Agriculture & Technology is hosting its first-ever agrivoltaics - allowing solar panels on agricultural land - conference this Thursday, June 26. Officially called Advancing Agrivoltaics for Alberta's Sustainable Future, the conference will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. in the college's Alumni Centre. It will be attended by farmers, provincial officials, researchers and solar developers.Read More
120-MW agrivoltaic solar project in Ohio approved for construction

The Ohio Power Siting Board approved the 120-MW Frasier Solar project sited in Knox County, Ohio, on Thursday. Open Road Renewables, Frasier's developer, EPC and operator, filed the project proposal with the Ohio Public Utilities Commission in October, 2023. Open Road will build the array on approximately 840 acres in Clinton and Miller townships, according to the project's fact sheet.Read More
Innovative company unveils major initiative that could revolutionize agriculture: 'Expected to significantly improve'

Ricoh, a Japanese multinational imaging and electronics company, unveiled its initiative to source some of its headquarters' electricity with its first-ever off-site Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) power plant in a press release.Read More
Northern Michigan farmers explore solar energy to boost sustainability

Michigan State University (MSU) is spearheading research into agrivoltaics, which combines solar energy with traditional farming practices. George Smith, MSU AgBioResearch Director, emphasized the importance of this research for farmers. "It's an important question for our farmers, so they can make informed decisions of whether or not they want to go in this direction in the future," he said.Read More
Solar panels could help make farms more resilient to climate change, but they need cash to make it work

At Thistle Whistle Farm in Hotchkiss, farmer Mark Waltermire grows a wide variety of crops on his 16 acres. Waltermire's farm is in Colorado's North Fork Valley, in the West Elk Range of the Rockies. The growing season is short, and the climate is semi-arid. As Waltermire notes, climate change is impacting how he operates.Read More
Solar and sheep in proposed project on Elmbrook Road; former BESS proposal site

The proposal, known as the Elmbrook Agrivoltaics project (agrivoltaics is the practice of using land for both solar energy generation and agricultural use), was outlined by Robert Caputo, with Toronto-based Compass Greenfield Development, and is to promote agricultural activities and solar energy on a single site.Read More
Australia approves 250 MW agrivoltaic solar farm in Tasmania

Australia's federal government has approved a 250 MW agrivoltaic solar farm in Tasmania, following a 20-day review. The landowner-led project is designed to minimize environmental impact and integrate solar generation with agricultural use.Read More
Huntertown solar field offers cool relief for local sheep

HUNTERTOWN, Ind. (WFFT) - As record heat hits northeast Indiana, a unique partnership is providing relief for a new flock of sheep. Local producer Zach Warner released about 85 female sheep and 110 young lambs at Northeastern REMC's Hatch Road Solar Field as part of an agrivoltaics initiative. Warner proposed the idea after learning about similar projects. "I brought the idea to REMC, and it just took off from there," Warner said. He praised the team effort, mentioning Benjamin Strack, Jon Weirick, and Amy Brown for their roles in making the project a reality.Read More
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