Europe’s push for renewable energy is creating a difficult land-use question: how can countries expand solar power without putting further pressure on farmland? Agrivoltaics, which combines crop production with photovoltaic panels, offers one possible answer—but its success depends on how projects are designed, governed and financed.
Across regions including Murcia in southeastern Spain and parts of Italy, solar panels are being installed above, between or alongside crops. The approach could protect agriculture from heat and extreme weather while creating an additional income stream for farmers. Critics, however, warn that agrivoltaics may allow energy companies and large investors to gain control of valuable land without addressing the deeper causes of farmland abandonment.
What is agrivoltaics?
Agrivoltaics, also known as agri-PV, integrates agricultural production with solar-energy generation. Panels may be placed above fields, at field margins or between rows of crops. The precise arrangement depends on local conditions, including the crop, climate, soil, topography and access to the electricity grid.
A 2023 study estimated that Europe could theoretically generate many times its current electricity demand through agrivoltaic systems. That potential has attracted attention as governments seek to expand renewable energy and reduce carbon emissions. Yet theoretical capacity does not mean that every available field is suitable or that every project will benefit farmers and local communities.
Why solar developers are looking to farmland
Large solar installations need relatively flat sites close to grid connections. Farmland often meets those requirements, while unused or abandoned land may have ecological value or be located far from suitable infrastructure.
This has intensified debate in rural areas. Solar power generally requires more land than some other forms of energy generation, and projects can compete with food production, biodiversity and local land-use priorities. Agrivoltaics seeks to reduce that conflict by keeping agriculture at the centre of the site, but the outcome depends on whether farming remains a genuine priority.
Interest is growing among governments and major companies. In southern Italy, Amazon and Apple have signed power-purchase agreements linked to agrivoltaic projects with a combined capacity of more than 150 megawatts. The projects illustrate how corporate demand for renewable electricity is becoming part of the debate over agricultural land.
Public funding is also supporting the sector. The EU-funded AGRISOL project is intended to invest €1.9 million in agrivoltaic projects, including initiatives in Italy and Spain. Italy has separately secured €1.7 billion in state aid for the development of agrivoltaic systems.
Potential benefits for crops and farmers
Solar panels can change the conditions in which crops grow. Their shade may reduce evaporation, help retain soil moisture and protect plants from hail, excessive heat and intense rainfall. Panels can also provide shade for farmworkers and grazing animals.
In some circumstances, agrivoltaics may improve water-use efficiency and land productivity. Research in Murcia found that water-stressed pepper plants performed better beneath panels than well-watered plants. That result does not mean every crop will benefit, but it shows why project design and local testing matter.
Farmers may also use solar electricity to operate irrigation systems, machinery or storage facilities. Surplus power can be sold to the grid, while landowners may receive rent from energy producers. These revenues could help reduce the financial pressure that contributes to farmland abandonment.
Supporters argue that the model could therefore serve two goals at once:
- protecting agricultural production from increasingly difficult weather conditions;
- creating an additional source of income for farms; and
- contributing to Europe’s renewable-energy and decarbonisation objectives.
Rules aim to keep agriculture central
European countries are developing safeguards to prevent solar installations from being described as agrivoltaics when farming becomes only a secondary activity. In France, projects must maintain at least 90 per cent of crop production compared with locally determined reference yields. In Italy, at least 70 per cent of the area must remain dedicated to agriculture.
Researchers argue that clearer classifications are needed. The presence of crops beneath panels alone may not be enough. Authorities may also need to assess yields, soil health, water use, biodiversity, ownership structures and the long-term management of the site.
The central question is whether the installation protects farmland or merely places solar infrastructure on agricultural land. A project that produces electricity while significantly reducing food production may not meet the wider purpose of agrivoltaics.
Concerns over ownership and unequal benefits
Farmers’ organisations and environmental groups remain divided. Some believe agrivoltaics can help farms adapt to climate change. Others say the model risks becoming a shortcut that leaves underlying agricultural problems unresolved.
High upfront costs and lengthy grid-connection queues can favour large developers, investment funds and multinational companies. A 2025 review by the Italian newspaper Today.it found that approximately 86 per cent of around €775 million in government funding for agrivoltaic projects went to large-scale developments, including projects owned by foreign multinationals.
A 2025 study based on interviews in four European regions also found that benefits could be concentrated among large farmers, landowners and investors rather than smaller farms and local communities. It highlighted the risk that residents and ecosystems may be excluded from decisions about projects affecting their land.
Power-purchase agreements can help companies meet renewable-energy targets, but they do not necessarily mean that electricity from a specific solar farm physically supplies a particular corporate facility. This distinction is especially relevant as demand from data centres and artificial-intelligence services grows.
What would make agrivoltaics fairer?
Researchers say public authorities can improve outcomes by setting strict agricultural standards and involving communities before projects are approved. Possible measures include:
- requiring measurable agricultural production throughout the project’s lifetime;
- giving smaller farms access to grants and technical support;
- prioritising projects that improve water efficiency or protect biodiversity;
- ensuring local residents participate in planning decisions;
- monitoring who owns the installation and receives its income; and
- giving well-designed projects fair access to grid connections.
Rental income could also support agroecological practices or help farmers move away from methods that place heavy pressure on soil and water. That would make the agricultural component more than a formal requirement.
Why the debate matters for Europe
Agrivoltaics sits at the intersection of several European policy priorities: renewable energy, food security, climate adaptation, rural development and land protection. The technology could help reconcile some of these objectives, but it cannot resolve them automatically.
For Ireland and other EU member states, the discussion is relevant even where agrivoltaic deployment remains limited. Decisions about renewable-energy expansion, agricultural support and grid infrastructure increasingly affect how rural land is used. The key issue is not simply how much solar electricity can be generated, but whether projects strengthen local farming and deliver benefits beyond investors.
Conclusion: agrivoltaics is a tool, not a guaranteed solution
Agrivoltaics could help Europe protect crops, diversify farm incomes and expand renewable electricity. But the model will only deliver those benefits if agricultural production remains meaningful, communities have a voice and public funding supports fair outcomes.
The strongest projects will be those designed around local farming and ecological needs rather than treating agriculture as a convenient location for solar panels. Agrivoltaics may be part of Europe’s energy transition, but its value will ultimately be judged by who controls the land and who benefits from its use.
