New Zealand’s first ‘expensive’ agriPV solar farm discovered

Rows of bifacial photovoltaic panels will be mounted on an east-west tracking system, with two different height configurations. This will enable commercial crop production along and under the panel structures. The system will generate about 2.3 GWh of renewable energy per year.

Next to the main set there will be a second, smaller set whose main function will be multi-functional testing, with full manual control, various height and panel configurations, as well as different panel technologies.

Subject to resource consent, the project will be built on a four-hectare site owned by the university, adjacent to the campus on the corner of Springs and Ellesmere Junction Road.

The energy farm is scheduled for completion in mid-2025. It will increase the university’s total generating capacity to approximately 3.56 GWh, which will cover 18% of the campus’s annual electricity needs after the upgrade of the heating system, which will be 100% electric.

Lincoln University Chief Operating Officer Susie Roulston said the Lincoln University Energy Farm is key to achieving the university’s goal of becoming carbon neutral by 2030 and carbon neutral by 2050.

“Our multidisciplinary approach has enabled decarbonization and an innovative agriPV system. The Lincoln University campus is both a model for sustainable practices and a showcase for transformative land use,” Roulston said.

The university said the project would be “the first demonstration of high-quality agriPV technology in Aotearoa New Zealand”, adding that “while grazing livestock is commonly practiced in solar installations locally and internationally, this approach is primarily aimed at managing grass growth and is of relatively low value”.

New Zealand’s Agro-PV Landscape

As the university mentioned, while this is the first project to explore “high-value” agriPV, it is not the first solar farm to be developed that includes agriPV. Instead, multiple projects have added it to their plans.

For example, New Zealand solar developer Lodestone Energy announced in late June 2024 that it would build a 220 MW agriPV project on the country’s South Island.

The project will cover 340 hectares, or about 1.5% of Haldon Station’s total area, and Lodestone plans to start construction next year. While the company did not specify which modules would be used in the project, it will complement a growing portfolio of solar projects in operation, with Lodestone currently operating the 33MW Kaitaia project and the 32MW Rangitaiki project on the country’s North Island.