Agri-PV deployment in Switzerland : developing a multi-criteria spatial analysis decision support system to prioritize locations

Climate change is disrupting weather patterns, leading to increased droughts, heavy rains, and heatwaves that threaten agricultural production. Achieving net zero by 2050 in Switzerland necessitates an energy transition. A goal solidified by the 2024 federal Electricity Act's binding target to produce 45 TWh/year from new renewable energies by 2050, with solar power playing a central role. Agri-Photovoltaics (Agri-PV) offers a dual solution by integrating solar panels on agricultural land, enabling simultaneous food production and renewable electricity generation, thus boosting land-use efficiency and supporting climate-resilient agriculture. The suitability of Swiss agricultural fields for Agri-PV is, however, unclear since many stakeholders and factors must be considered when selecting a location. A lack of planning can lead to high failure rates, as the “Solarexpress” showed. This thesis developed a methodology for a multi-criteria spatial decision support system (SDSS) to rank agricultural fields in an area of interest in Switzerland for Agri-PV suitability (classifications: Excellent, Good, Fair, Poor). Through expert interviews, consulting relevant literature, and an Agri-PV lecture series, 21 critical factors (6x Electricity, 10x Agricultural & Environmental, 5x Tourism & Aesthetic) were identified alongside Boolean exclusion criteria. Based on 21 stakeholder surveys, the individual factors were weighted, revealing subjective distributions. To address this, an interactive dashboard was created, allowing users to allocate weights and utilize further interactive modules individually. This dashboard is publicly accessible via the following link: https://buja.shinyapps.io/MA_thesis_BuJa_Agri-PV/ The SDSS was designed and tested on the supply area of ewz (city of Zurich). Using average stakeholder weightings, 72 % of the agricultural land was classified as "Good” suitability, with a production potential of 400 GWh/year, exceeding local 2040 solar targets by 100 GWh. Applying the stakeholder weightings to biased and unbiased Monte Carlo sensitivity analyses showed that Overhead semitransparent modules over permanent crops are best suited for Agri-PV. The Monte Carlo simulations also enabled the creation of heatmaps, which identified clusters of interest that could be pursued. While the SDSS offers valuable initial insights for informed decision-making, its limitations (e.g., not considering psychological factors such as willingness to invest or the acceptance of the landowner and the surrounding community towards Agri-PV) require further, in-depth investigation in a second step to ensure successful Agri-PV deployment. Overall, Agri-PV deployment in Switzerland faces two major hurdles: (1) the vague legal framework for Agri-PV which states that it must be "beneficial for agricultural production" but does not specify how this is measured. And (2) Agri-PV is currently a niche, research-focused topic in Switzerland, with limited public awareness. To foster widespread acceptance and successful deployment, a clear and expanded legal framework for Agri-PV, along with educating the broad public about its benefits, is essential.