Mammoth Solar and Purdue University are partnering on a project that will test how agrivoltaics can help farmers diversify revenue streams and strengthen resilience to extreme weather and other financial hurdles.
Agrivoltaics is the combination of farming energy and crops to keep the land healthy and offer other sources of revenue for farmers.
The university and its partners launched the Midwest Agrivoltaics for Resilient Communities initiative under the National Science Foundation’s Regional Resilience Innovation Incubator program. The first phase is expected to lead the way to a $15 million phase two grant for more research.
“When hail ruins a harvest, heat strains livestock, or windstorms cut electricity, farmers and their communities are hit hard,” said Dan Chavas, principal investigator at Purdue University, in a press release. “Our goal is to understand how agrivoltaics can make our nation’s rural communities more resilient and prosperous.”
Land included in the Mammoth Solar project in Pulaski and Starke counties will be used for demonstrations, crop trials, robotics testing and monitoring systems. Doral Renewables leases land from farmers to create solar fields that harvest energy.
Doral Renewables will collaborate with Nextpower, which offers solar tracking systems, to monitor the intiative.
“Mammoth Solar brings practical expertise in large-scale solar development and dual-use practices,” said Ed Baptista, Doral Renewables vice president of development and agrivoltaics. “By dedicating space for crop trials and harnessing Purdue and Nextpower’s expertise, we aim to show that agrivoltaics can provide reliable power, protect agricultural productivity, and strengthen rural economies against climate and market disruptions.”
Nextpower's data gleaned from clients around the world is used to predict weather events and solar optimization.
“Agrivoltaics is already well established in other markets like Europe, and this initiative is an important opportunity to advance dual-use solar in the U.S.,” said Jake Morin, Nextpower chief product officer.
