Where agricultural PV (agrivoltaics) is concerned, Italy is the European leader. This is thanks to targeted incentive schemes, a timely, clear legal framework and a strong agricultural sector that benefits from high solar irradiation and the availability of land. The 2024 prohibition of ground-mounted systems on agricultural land is also likely to have driven the rise of agricultural PV in Italy.
Dual land use concepts remain highly relevant in Europe because they combine maximum PV efficiency with other use types, which boosts public acceptance for large-scale PV plants. What’s more, the high population density means that availability of agricultural land is limited in Europe.
Agricultural PV – photovoltaics sharing space with agriculture – is becoming increasingly important. Intersolar Europe has recognized the trend. Every year, numerous suppliers present their agricultural PV solutions at the exhibition. Intersolar Europe also supports the Agrivoltaics Industry Forum, which will be taking place in Milan, Italy, from October 21–22, 2025 – a homage to the fact that Italy is at the forefront of this concept.
What factors have given Italian agricultural PV a boost? The country passed the Guidelines for The Design, Construction and Operation of Agrivoltaic Plants in 2022, paving the way for making agricultural PV eligible for subsidies. The guidelines make a distinction between standard and advanced agricultural PV systems, with the latter defining a minimum height of photovoltaic modules on fixed structures of 2.1 meters, an optional tracker and agricultural monitoring systems to collect yield and microclimate data. The continuation of agricultural operations on the land is non-negotiable.
In 2023, the Piano Nazionale di Ripresa e Resilienza – PNRR (National Recovery and Resilience Plan) created a fund for agricultural PV containing 1.7 billion euros for CapEx and OpEx subsidies. Up to 40 percent of investment costs can be covered by the fund. There have been two tenders since the plan came into being, with the first round financing a capacity of 1.5 gigawatts (GW). Agricultural PV plants may also be submitted for contract for difference tenders outlining general PV installations.
In 2024, a decree made building ground-mounted systems on agricultural land illegal in Italy, which has given rise to agricultural PV projects on cultivated land.
Commercial agricultural PV projects prove profitable in Italy
Compared with other European countries, such as Germany, the Italian agricultural PV industry has long left the pilot phase, with several megawatt-size plants having been realized and running profitably.
In the region of Lazio, Cero Generation operates the 70-MW plant Pontinia Agrivoltaic Solar PV Park. The plant was built without subsidies with the help of two ten-year PPAs and sells its electricity to two large customers: Heineken and Philips.
In Sicily, a cooperative cultivates local grains on a 22-hectare plot of land with a 9.7-MW plant operated by Renantis.
RWE is building two agricultural PV plants in the region of Campania, one in Morcone (9.8 MW) and one in Acquafredda (9.3 MW). The project will be using trackers mounted at a height of three meters; the plants, which are funded through the National Recovery and Resilience Plan, are expected to start operation at the end of 2025.
Additionally, Lightsource BP is planning the construction of a 21-MW agricultural PV park in Bucceri, Sicily. The project is currently awaiting approval.
The Italian model for promoting agricultural PV has created an effective interconnection between politics, technology, industry and agriculture. This could be emulated by other countries, such as Spain, Greece or even India in the future and makes the Italian agricultural PV market a point of reference for other European and even global markets.
Are you curious to find out more about agricultural PV? Would you like to meet the key players of the sector in Italy and Europe? Then join Intersolar Europe and the European industry association SolarPower Europe at the Agrivoltaics Industry Forum Europe 2025! Further information is available here .