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Scientific frontiers of agrivoltaic cropping systems

Campana, Pietro E. [Mälardalen University, Västerås (Sweden)] (ORCID:0000000213519245)·Macknick, Jordan [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)] (ORCID:0000000155658879)·Croci, Michele [Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, Piacenza (Italy)] (ORCID:0000000173562774)·Elkadeem, Mohamed R. [King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals, Dhahran (Saudi Arabia)] (ORCID:0000000204983281)·Gorjian, Shiva [Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran (Iran); Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems (ISE), Freiburg (Germany)] (ORCID:0000000315871346)·Pascaris, Alexis [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)]·Cuppari, Rosa I. [Starwind Specialty Insurance Services, LLC, New York, NY (United States); University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC (United States)] (ORCID:0000000335303100)·Amaducci, Stefano [Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, Piacenza (Italy)] (ORCID:0000000261849257)·Liu, Wen [University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei (China)]·Trommsdorff, Max [Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems (ISE), Freiburg (Germany); University of Freiburg (Germany)] (ORCID:0000000323305168)·Sturchio, Matthew A. [Cornell University, Ithaca, NY (United States)] (ORCID:0000000150673770)·Muller, Onno [Forschungszentrum Juelich (Germany)] (ORCID:0000000204735632)·Agostini, Alessandro [Italian National Agency for New Technologies (ENEA), Rome (Italy)] (ORCID:0000000190950672)·Chatzipanagi, Anatoli [European Commission, Ispra (Italy). Joint Research Centre] (ORCID:000000032411278X)·Scognamiglio, Alessandra [Italian National Agency for New Technologies (ENEA), Rome (Italy)] (ORCID:0000000298164016)·Zhang, Jie [Uppsala University (Sweden)]
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Abstract

Agrivoltaic (AV) systems integrate agriculture with electricity conversion through photovoltaic (PV) modules. Compared with conventional ground-mounted PV systems, AV systems can reduce land-use competition and offer agronomic and economic advantages, such as more stable crop production and additional farm income. However, AV systems can decrease agricultural performance and are typically 20-90% costlier to install than conventional PV systems. Here, in this Review, we analyse the implementation of AV cropping systems to preserve agricultural activities and highlight challenges and barriers. The global electricity potential of AV systems is ~66-385 PWh annually, depending on PV technology and installation density, if deployed in the most suitable areas, without accounting for grid availability. Scaling up has been hindered by crop selection for shading conditions, decreased energy conversion per unit of land area and issues with social acceptance, landscape impact and environmental sustainability. These issues can be addressed by developments such as wavelength-selective PV; system configurations, such as optimizing module spacing to reduce shading; and operational methods, such as optimizing tracking strategies and integrating agricultural infrastructure. Cross-sector policies can support AV systems by addressing the needs of diverse stakeholders over shared land resources. Further development will require collaboration among the design, performance, deployment and systems research communities.

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Campana, Pietro E. [Mälardalen University, Västerås (Sweden)] (ORCID:0000000213519245), Macknick, Jordan [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)] (ORCID:0000000155658879), Croci, Michele [Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, Piacenza (Italy)] (ORCID:0000000173562774), Elkadeem, Mohamed R. [King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals, Dhahran (Saudi Arabia)] (ORCID:0000000204983281), Gorjian, Shiva [Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran (Iran); Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems (ISE), Freiburg (Germany)] (ORCID:0000000315871346), Pascaris, Alexis [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)], Cuppari, Rosa I. [Starwind Specialty Insurance Services, LLC, New York, NY (United States); University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC (United States)] (ORCID:0000000335303100), Amaducci, Stefano [Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, Piacenza (Italy)] (ORCID:0000000261849257), Liu, Wen [University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei (China)], Trommsdorff, Max [Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems (ISE), Freiburg (Germany); University of Freiburg (Germany)] (ORCID:0000000323305168), Sturchio, Matthew A. [Cornell University, Ithaca, NY (United States)] (ORCID:0000000150673770), Muller, Onno [Forschungszentrum Juelich (Germany)] (ORCID:0000000204735632), Agostini, Alessandro [Italian National Agency for New Technologies (ENEA), Rome (Italy)] (ORCID:0000000190950672), Chatzipanagi, Anatoli [European Commission, Ispra (Italy). Joint Research Centre] (ORCID:000000032411278X), Scognamiglio, Alessandra [Italian National Agency for New Technologies (ENEA), Rome (Italy)] (ORCID:0000000298164016), Zhang, Jie [Uppsala University (Sweden)]. 2025-11-04. Scientific frontiers of agrivoltaic cropping systems. https://doi.org/10.1038/s44359-025-00110-9

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