Scientists conducted a literature review in six areas of agrivoltaic energy, taking into account sustainability, cover crop productivity, socio-economic resilience, solar energy generation, spatial efficiency and species. They found that, under optimal conditions, agrivoltaic energy could generate more than $1 trillion in additional global agricultural income.
Researchers from Western University in Canada have conducted a multi-dimensional study on agricultural voltaics and concluded that this form of energy production could help improve energy production. more than 1,800 million tons annually in global crop yields.
“This research looked at agrivoltaic studies between 2018-2024 and synthesized them across six interconnected impact spheres (6S): sustainability, soil and crop productivity, socio-economic resilience, solar energy generation, spatial efficiency and species,” said corresponding author Uzair Jamil. pv magazine. “It showcased agrivoltaics not just as a land-sharing concept, but as a systems-level solution to some of the world’s most pressing challenges.”
The researchers synthesized findings from previous studies to consider the spectrum of environmental, economic and social benefits, rather than focusing solely on energy yield and food production. The insights were divided into six interconnected spheres, known as the Six Spheres (6S) of agrivoltaic energy. “By organizing the findings into six domains, the article shows that agrivoltaic energy is not just a technical innovation, but a multi-dimensional strategy capable of simultaneously addressing food insecurity, climate stress, land use conflict and economic vulnerability,” Jamil explains.
The study used the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) framework to review the literature. As part of this, they initiated a Google Scholar search using a three-level keyword structure. Level 1 was ‘Solar Energy’, Level 2 included ‘Agrivoltaic(s)’ and ‘Agri-volatic(s)’, and Level 3 was ‘Agriculture’.
The time frame for the included studies was from January 2018 to April 2024. Initial results yielded 1,599 studies, but after excluding duplicates, non-English articles, and conference papers, 135 articles remained. These were read in full, but after evaluation of the full text only 88 remained. They then divided the findings into the different areas.
As expected, the literature analysis showed that yield improvement is a primary benefit of agrivoltaic solar energy. The increased yield rate was then used as a basis for projecting national and global yield increases. However, the researchers noted that the projections should be considered optimistic scenarios and that agrivoltaics could bring significant benefits if implemented globally.
“These projections should be interpreted as scenario-dependent upper bounds rather than predictive forecasts, intended to illustrate the magnitude of agricultural voltaic energy potential under favorable but non-universal conditions,” they said.
“One of the key insights from the assessment is that up to 1.8 billion tonnes of additional global crop production will occur annually under a maximum potential scenario. That represents enough calories to feed more than 2.1 billion people per year, highlighting the major implications for food security,” Jamil further explains. “Economically, increased agricultural production could generate more than $1 trillion in potential added global agricultural income, strengthening rural livelihoods and national economies. Additionally, we found reduced water demand and CO₂ emissions through partial shade, climate buffering, and clean energy generation; and improved land productivity by co-optimizing agriculture and solar energy on the same land basis.”
The research work was presented in “Agrivoltaic energy as system innovation: multidimensional benefits from global climate, agriculture, energy and ecosystem studies”, published in Renewable and sustainable energy assessments.
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