Agrivoltaics

A new report says that while the national-level transition towards clean electricity is progressing well in India, it is far more uneven at the state level. It highlights the need for states to strengthen regulatory frameworks and develop transition plans.

The state of Punjab has a potential for around 871 GWp of agrivoltaics. It is followed by Haryana (700 GWp) and Rajasthan (592 GWp).

New research from Italy shows lower wheat production under elevated agrivoltaic systems, but a simultaneous increase in nutritional value for livestock. pv magazine Italy spoke with the academics about their future research.

A Spanish group of researchers has investigated how much agricultural production may be hosted by existing ground-mounted PV plants using dual-axis trackers. They outlined a new methodology that reportedly enables to quantify how much space around and beneath the panels can be uses for agricultural purposes.

A survey conducted by Dutch researchers has compared the visual impact of overhead and vertical agrivoltaics farms on nearby residents and has found that vertical arrays look less invasive.

A group of researchers from the University of Lisboa and the Military Academy reported on the viability of agrivoltaics in Portugal. It found that spaced rows of PV modules combined with shadow-friendly crops had the most promising return and a payback period of less than five years.

Researchers in China have built a prototype of a spectral-splitting concentrator agrivoltaic system (SCAPV) with a PV efficiency of 9.9, a hybrid light-use efficiency rating of 9.05%, and a levelized cost of energy (LCOE) of $0.033/kWh.

The National Solar Energy Federation of India will serve as the secretariat of the India Agrivoltaics Alliance (IAA). The Alliance comprises 12 organizations and is supported by the India Climate Collaborative and Bloomberg Philanthropies.

An international research group has analyzed a vertical bifacial agrivoltaics system in a drought-stricken part of Chile. They say that the solar array can improve water efficiency for crop irrigation, while the vertical system configuration optimizes PV power generation throughout the day, minimizing curtailment.

A new study by the University of Hohenheim shows that shading from PV systems can improve agricultural yields, especially in dry periods, but additional research is needed.