The French developer Valeco has deployed an agrivoltaic set up within the fodder area and located that it gives advantages for the standard and amount of the harvest, in addition to grazing sheep beneath photo voltaic panels.
From pv journal in France
The French wind and photo voltaic power firm Valeco has printed the primary outcomes from an agrivoltaic challenge that mixes photo voltaic era and fodder manufacturing to be launched on the finish of 2021.
The challenge is positioned within the French division of Saône-et-Loire and is developed in collaboration with native farmers Pôle ovin de Charolles, the Agricultural Excessive College of Charolles (Eplefpa), and the Chamber of Agriculture of Saône-et- Loire. Its function is to research how the presence of photo voltaic panels impacts the amount and high quality of fodder development and the way sheep behave in an agrivoltaic atmosphere.
The ability is split into three models: an space that hosts photo voltaic panels with module traces at a distance of two.5 m, a second space with photo voltaic modules at a distance of 4 m between rows, and a reference space with out PV panels.
In accordance with Valeco, the primary 12 months of testing revealed that the shade offered by the photo voltaic panels made it attainable to guard the grassland from excessive local weather circumstances. “The presence of the panels tends to clean the annual curve of grass development,” explains Michaël Floquet, director of operations at Eplefpa.
As anticipated, the check confirmed that the fodder development beneath the panels was sluggish within the spring. “However there isn’t any scarcity of grass presently in all the opposite plots and it’s at all times taken benefit of by the breeder,” says Floquet who says that, quite the opposite, there’s numerous grass in winter and summer time that meals high quality is maintained longer.
Valeco discovered that the grass has little or no ears beneath the panels, which makes it simpler for animals to digest and permits it to take care of good dietary high quality for an extended time period. As well as, autumn development was not affected by the panels, and between the rows the grass was of higher high quality than the expansion within the management space with out panels as a result of it obtained extra direct gentle.
The trial confirmed no destructive results on sheep grazing. Quite the opposite, the sheep reap the benefits of the safety of the panels to relaxation, particularly in the summertime after they search shelter from the warmth or rain.
“The shade offered by the panels is certainly an asset to consolation the animals when the solar could be very sturdy and sizzling,” stated the Chamber of Agriculture of Saône et Loire Technical Supervisor Laurent Solas. “We will additionally determine enhancements, particularly for a greater distribution of rain beneath the panels. The check is essential to alter the configuration and make the perfect ones circumstances for an ideal coexistence between electrical energy manufacturing and farming.”
Valeco plans to construct a number of agrivoltaic amenities with this configuration to check its validity on completely different crops and farms.
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