Farming and solar power are competing for land. Can agrivoltaics solve the problem?
Agrivoltaics could help to prevent farmland abandonment by protecting crops and boosting income. But some say the solution ignores the real problems.
In Murcia, Spain, solar panels now shelter a variety of crops, including bell peppers, wine grapes and dragon fruit. This region, renowned for its agriculture and abundant sunshine, is investigating whether farming and solar energy can coexist without competing for land. Agrivoltaics, which integrates food production with renewable energy production, is a concept being explored in this context.
According to a 2023 study, Europe could generate 25 times its current electricity demand through agrivoltaics, commonly referred to as agri-PV. However, solar power also has its drawbacks, requiring more land than other energy sources to produce the same amount of electricity, which has led to conflicts over land use, particularly in rural areas.
Governments and large technology companies are turning to agrivoltaics. In January, Elon Musk suggested that sparsely populated areas of Spain and Sicily could generate enough solar power for all of Europe. Both Amazon and Apple have signed contracts to purchase power from large-scale agrivoltaic projects in southern Italy, with a combined capacity of over 150 megawatts. Italy has also secured €1.7 billion in state aid for the initiative.
However, experts caution that agrivoltaics is not a panacea. Angelo Gentili, national secretary of Legambiente, Italy's largest environmental organization, notes that the initiative is only a small contribution and could have a significant impact on decarbonisation goals if it expands. But not all solar and agriculture combinations are suitable.
Pilar Flores, who coordinates an EU-funded agrivoltaics project at the Murcian Institute for Agricultural and Environmental Research and Development (IMIDA), emphasizes the need for strict classification to minimize land loss.
Agrivoltaics can offer benefits such as improved water-use efficiency, protection from extreme weather, and increased land productivity. It can also help farmers cope with climate change by reducing evaporation, retaining soil moisture, and shielding crops from hail. However, the benefits depend on the specific agrivoltaic system and site characteristics. In Murcia, Flores' team found that water-stressed peppers grew better under solar panels than well-watered ones.
Despite these potential benefits, not all farmers are convinced. Fabrizio Garbarino, president of Italy's farmers' union, argues that agrivoltaics does not address the broader issues farmers face and should focus on preventing farmland abandonment. Some startups representing large companies are pressuring farmers to sell their land, he says.
While Big Tech firms claim agrivoltaic power-purchase agreements help them meet net-zero targets, the actual carbon footprints of AI data centers remain unclear. A 2025 study found that benefits of agrivoltaics often favor large-scale farmers, landowners, and investors over smaller farmers and local communities, often excluding residents and ecosystems from decision-making.
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