Report: Plant production agrivoltaics across southern Australia

This report explores agrivoltaics (AV), which combines solar energy generation and crop production on the same land. The research focused mainly on vineyards across southern Australia and examined how AV systems affect crop growth, fruit quality and farm productivity.

As Australian agriculture faces growing challenges from climate change, extreme weather and rising energy costs, AV offers a way to produce renewable energy while supporting farm businesses.

To better understand its potential, researchers established demonstration sites in vineyards and horticultural systems across Victoria, South Australia and Western Australia. They collected data on crop growth, yield and fruit quality and used modelling to compare different AV system designs and their long-term performance. In addition, the project shared findings through field days, workshops and industry engagement activities.

The results showed that growers can successfully integrate AV systems into vineyards and horticultural enterprises with little impact on production. In many cases, crops performed similarly under AV, while some sites recorded benefits such as stronger canopy growth and improved acid retention in fruit. Modelling showed that well-designed systems can improve overall land-use efficiency by producing food and renewable energy from the same area.

The report provides practical Australian evidence to help growers, industry and policymakers assess AV as a future farming option. It also highlights the importance of site-specific design, ongoing monitoring and further research to support wider adoption.

Read the project snapshot for Plant production agrivoltaics across southern Australia here.