Agrivoltaics: A Review of Sustainable Integration Between Solar Energy and Agriculture
Keywords:
Agrivoltaics, Land use efficiency, Renewable energy, Solar energy, Sustainable agricultureAbstract
The combination of agriculture and solar photovoltaic systems, referred to as agrivoltaics, has gained importance as an efficient strategy for meeting the increasing energy needs and addressing global food security concerns. Given the current competition in terms of land resource utilization, agrivoltaics presents a promising solution for enhancing land productivity and generating renewable energy. The objective of this review paper is to evaluate the latest advances in agrivoltaics in terms of design optimization, partial shading effects, environmental benefits, and socio-economic considerations. This research follows the systematic review method by considering scientific literature published from 2022 to 2025 in reputable academic databases. Selected papers are examined with respect to different aspects like land use efficiency, crop productivity, energy production, water use efficiency, and economic feasibility. Special focus is given to novel technologies in the field of solar PVs, such as semi-transparent, bifacial, and intelligent tracking PV panels. It is found that agrivoltaics can lead to higher overall productivity of land by up to 60-70% compared to single land use systems. The partial shading effect provided by solar PV modules results in the creation of favorable microclimate conditions, resulting in lower soil temperatures, reduced evapotranspiration rates, and enhanced soil moisture content. Moreover, agrivoltaic farming provides farmers with double earning potential, thus boosting their financial sustainability. To conclude, agrivoltaic systems can be considered a viable and scalable solution for land use practices. Yet, several issues, including high upfront costs and policy restrictions, should be tackled to implement these technologies on a larger scale.
References
A. Zahrawi and Aly Mousaad Aly, “A Review of Agrivoltaic Systems: Addressing Challenges and Enhancing Sustainability,” Sustainability, vol. 16, no. 18, pp. 8271–8271, Sept. 2024.
D. Soto-Gómez, “Integration of Crops, Livestock, and Solar Panels: A Review of Agrivoltaic Systems,” Agronomy, vol. 14, no. 8, p. 1824, Aug. 2024.
R.K. Chopdar, N. Sengar, N. C. Giri, and D. Halliday, “Comprehensive review on agrivoltaics with technical, environmental and societal insights,” Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, vol. 197, pp. 114416–114416, Apr. 2024.
E. B. Agyekum, “A comprehensive review of two decades of research on agrivoltaics, a promising new method for electricity and food production,” Sustainable Energy Technologies and Assessments, vol. 72, p. 104055, Dec. 2024.
R. Maity, N.P. Hariram, M. M. Quazi, and Sudhakar Kumarasamy, “Agrivoltaic Systems for Sustainability: An Overview of Emerging Trends and Practices,” Solar Compass, pp. 100148–100148, Nov. 2025.
L. Sollazzo, G. Mangherini, V. Diolaiti, and D. Vincenzi, “A Comprehensive Review of Agrivoltaics: Multifaceted Developments and the Potential of Luminescent Solar Concentrators and Semi-Transparent Photovoltaics,” Sustainability, vol. 17, no. 5, p. 2206, Mar. 2025.
S. Pascaris, C. Schelly, M. Rouleau, and J. M. Pearce, “Do agrivoltaics improve public support for solar? A survey on perceptions, preferences, and priorities,” Green Technology, Resilience, and Sustainability, vol. 2, no. 1, Oct. 2022.
L. Pekk et al., “Future of Agrivoltaic projects: A review from the technological forecasting perspective,” Cleaner Engineering and Technology, vol. 28, p. 101057, Sept. 2025.
S. Y. Kim, N. Rayes, A. R. Kemanian, E. D. Gomez, and N. Y. Doumon, “Semitransparent organic and perovskite photovoltaics for agrivoltaic applications,” Energy Advances, vol. 4, no. 1, pp. 37–54, 2025.
