Road to Ecological Transition: the Italian Perspective of the Agrivoltaics Development

This paper has been jointly prepared by the authors, as experts, researchers and players of the renewable energy sector and in their quality of members of AIAS (Italian Association for Sustainable Agrivoltaic), as the most relevant association in Italy for the development of a sustainable way of doing agrivoltaics. As Agri-PV represents nowadays the most sustainable way to combine the agricultural land use and the renewable energy production, a multidisciplinary and cross-sectoral approach is necessary to demonstrate its value, avoiding any type of misconception about land use and making the Agri-PV social accepted. For that purpose, energy-law experts, together with policymakers and researchers, can together validate the operational feasibility of Agri-PV to gain public and institutional support. On one hand, the technical support is crucial for implementing technical innovations to the plant and, on the other hand, the role of legal experts is necessary for clearly understanding the regulatory framework in the context of which the industry stakeholders operate. Awareness of the values of Agri-PV needs to be preserved, along with the need to achieve European targets, and requires a correct interpretation of the regulations and an evolving vision of the renewable energy market. In the ecological transition context, a multi-sectoral approach deriving from associations between professionals and players in the energy, environment and agricultural sectors, can certainly support the correct development of Agri-PV in Italy.