Producers at the La Svolta winery in the Puglia region of southern Italy have discovered that installing solar panels can result in improved quality of the wines they produce in their vineyards.
By integrating so-called agrovoltaic systems (which produce food and energy in the same area) into their vineyards, they realized that the shade generated by the solar panels delays the ripening and harvesting of the grapes by three or four weeks.
Without as much exposure to the sun, the grapes accumulate less sugar, which favors the balance between alcohol content and acidity in the fermentation process. The result is better quality wines without the need for producers to intervene.
Furthermore, technology has made it possible to grow grape varieties that are not typical of the region, while providing economic and environmental advantages, such as saving water and generating solar energy on the same land where the vines are grown.
In total, the photovoltaic project has 7.770 double-bonded thin-film solar panels. Together, they have a combined output power of 970 kW. The solar panels are oriented south at an angle of 28 degrees.
What are agrivoltaic systems?
Agrivoltaic systems are installations that integrate solar energy generation with agricultural activities in the same space.
These systems use strategically designed photovoltaic panel structures so that the land beneath or around the panels continues to be used for growing food, grazing animals, or other agricultural practices.
O Canal Solar was a pioneer in Brazil in comprehensively addressing this technology, providing complete information on the subject at a time when this type of application was still little known and practically nonexistent in the country. Read the special report that was produced at the time by clicking here.
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