The Agricultural Research and Technology Institute (IRTA) leads the first pilot project for photovoltaic energy in fruit groves in Catalonia. It is a system known as agrovoltaísmo, which consists of installing solar panels at high altitude in crop fields.
The pilot test has been carried out in Mollerussa (Lleida) and occupies about half a hectare of a farm with apple trees of the golden and gala varieties.
During the five years that it will last, researchers will take data to see how the shade of the plates affects soil moisture and fruit production. The objective is to make renewable energy production compatible with agricultural production. The project is financed through the Climate Fund of the Generalitat.
The pilot project installed on the IRTA farm in Mollerussa occupies 2,880 square meters and evaluates two different solar panel systems. 322 photovoltaic panels have been installed at a height of 4.5 meters with an energy production of 165 kW. Half of the installed panels are dynamic and move throughout the day to make the most of solar radiation, while the other half corresponds to fixed semi-transparent glass panels.
The objective is to analyze how the plates affect fruit production and see if this model allows both activities to be combined.
Although it is still too early to determine, IRTA researchers believe that the energy installation can benefit crops. The reason is that the shade they create can help reduce the temperature of the field and this creates a beneficial microclimate in hot situations, which is when the tree suffers the most stress, explained the head of fruit growing at IRTA, Luis Asín.
For their part, the general director of Climate Change and Environmental Quality, Mireia Boya, and the director of Agriculture and Livestock, Elisenda Guillaumes, have highlighted that agrovoltaism "demonstrates" that it is possible to combine the production of renewable electrical energy with the production of food.
Acció Climàtica has established general criteria for the installation of systems that combine both models. To begin with, the surface area used to install the panels cannot exceed 15% or 20%, depending on the crops, guaranteeing an agricultural production of a minimum of 60%.
