Agrivoltaic in Chile - Integrative solution to use efficiently land for food and energy production and generating potential synergy effects shown by a pilot plant in Metropolitan region

In Chile, one of the most vulnerable productive sectors, in the context of climate change, is agriculture. The country faces the risk of losing high-quality soil surface mainly by desertification, erosion, contamination and inappropriate agriculture practices. Risk of agricultural land losses constantly rises due to the increasing food and energy demand, as well as the use of land for human dwellings and industrial operations. In addition, the rapid growth of the energy sector is highlighted, where Chile has ambitious goals on expanding non-conventional renewable energies. Here, solar photovoltaics (PV) present high potential due to the high irradiation levels especially in the northern region of Chile. This, added to decreasing PV system costs, allow solar PV installations going south closer to the energy consumption poles. In the context of both trends, a system to combine agriculture with photovoltaics (APV) is presented as an inter-sectorial solution for food and energy production using the same land benefit from synergy effects like reduction of water evaporation and protection for crops, especially in arid/semi-arid zones. Additionally, first results of an APV pilot plant near Santiago of Chile are presented. Finally, conclusions are developed in addition to an outlook in order to provide a baseline of information for the usefulness of the concept in the country.