Agrovoltaics: New Opportunities for Ukraine’s Energy Sector and Agriculture
During the Agro Ukraine Summit, the Head of the State Agency on Energy Efficiency and Energy Saving of Ukraine, Hanna Zamazieieva, joined a professional discussion on a topic that is rapidly gaining global relevance and is just beginning to emerge in Ukraine — agrovoltaics.
This is an innovative combination of solar energy and agriculture on the same plot of land. The uniqueness of this approach lies in the fact that solar panels do not require additional space — vegetables, berries, greens can grow beneath them, or livestock can graze. This allows for the most efficient use of resources and the creation of dual-purpose spaces for food production and clean energy generation.
"Today, agrovoltaics in Ukraine is at an early stage of development, but we already have all the prerequisites for its rapid implementation. The peak of solar electricity generation coincides with the most active phases of agricultural work, allowing farmers to partially or fully power their operations with energy from their own solar power stations. This is a path toward energy independence — a critically important factor amid the transformation of the country's energy system," emphasized Hanna Zamazieieva.
In 2025, there is a dynamic increase in demand for solar power plants with storage systems. These are increasingly being installed on the roofs of farms, warehouses, grain elevators, greenhouses, as well as to power pumps, irrigation systems, drying, and cooling equipment for agricultural products.
A key tool of state support is the Decarbonization Fund of Ukraine. Within its framework, agricultural enterprises do not need to wait for a separate program — they can already apply for preferential loans to install solar power systems directly on their land. This is a fast and effective way to reduce costs and enhance the resilience of agribusiness to energy challenges.
The effectiveness of this mechanism has already been proven in practice: the Fund has financed 36 projects in six regions of Ukraine. Of these, 13 projects involve the installation of solar power stations with a total investment of over UAH 180 million. And this is just the beginning — the potential is much greater.
International experience confirms the relevance and effectiveness of this direction. According to the European research center, covering just 1% of agricultural land in the EU with agrovoltaic systems could provide up to 944 GW of electricity generation capacity. This would allow not only to meet but exceed the EU’s renewable energy targets for 2030.
Ukraine has all the prerequisites not just to join this trend, but to become a leader. By uniting the efforts of farmers, energy professionals, and the state, we can build a new model of agriculture — energy-independent, environmentally friendly, and competitive on the global market.
