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Cycle 9 (2020 Deadline)
Agrivoltaic technology in drylands of West Africa: strengthening national innovation systems for diffusion and market development at the water-energy-food nexus
PI: Francis Kemausuor (fkemausuor.soe@knust.edu.gh), The Brew-Hammond Energy Centre, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, with co-PI Patricia Amankwaa-Yeboah, CSIR-Crops Research Institute
U.S. Partner: Efthymios Nikolopoulos, Florida Institute of Technology
Project Dates: May 2021 - April 2024
Project Overview
Ghana’s Renewable Energy Masterplan has targeted the installation of 448 MW of utility-scale solar photovoltaic (PV) capacity by 2030. Achieving this target requires approximately 1,120 acres of land. As of 2019, less than 50 MW of the target had been achieved, leaving close to 400 MW still to be developed. The land requirement to install the remaining systems is high and has potential to erode the environmental benefits of renewable energy. In land-scarce areas, using agricultural lands for solar PV installation may also generate conflicts with existing land users.
The introduction of agrivoltaic systems in dryland regions is a step towards renewable energy and food production security in deprived rural areas where farming is the dominant occupation. The microclimatic conditions found beneath solar PV panels are expected to have positive impacts on crop production, irrigation water management, and renewable energy production. In warmer temperatures, the solar PV panels are expected to maximize crop yield by introducing a shading effect to the crop, thereby reducing heat and light stress and preventing depression in photosynthesis, thus allowing for greater carbon uptake for growth and reproduction. The system is also expected to ensure the efficient delivery of water to plants by decreasing evapotranspiration from soil and crop canopies.
This PEER project sought to inform solar installation companies and funding agencies, particularly in northern Ghana, about outcomes from agrivoltaic systems and how to maximize land use by incorporating crop cultivation under large-scale solar PV installations. The team sought to inform policies to improve agricultural sector growth while increasing renewable energy contribution into the national grid, thereby expanding the access rate of electricity to deprived farming communities in northern Ghana.
Final Summary of Project Activities
The researchers set up two tropical agrivoltaic research fields in Ghana, one on the research fields of Crops Research Institute of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR-CRI), Fumesua, and one on the New Energy compound, under Hikma Agro Services Limited, Tamale. This experiment collected data on radiation and understory panel temperature, photosynthetically active radiations and air temperature within the plant canopies in the open field agriculture and agrivoltaic systems, as well as soil temperature and volumetric moisture content. The team also installed weather stations at both sites to understand the impact of the technology across climatic gradients. This PEER project also included training for staff on data collection protocols for a variety of parameters, including plant height, stem elongation, number of primary branches, crop penology, number of flowers per cluster, and plant physiological data. Team members collected field data weekly.
Prior to setting up the experimental fields, a socioeconomic baseline survey was conducted in the northern parts of the country to assess farmers' willingness to support agrivoltaic projects. The results showed that farmers are more likely to adopt or agree to an agrivoltaic technology if they believe the project will benefit local communities, farmers, and the state. After setting up the experimental fields, the PEER team also held farmer field activities to introduce farmers to the concept of agrivoltaics and how it could help optimize land use for energy and food production.
The researchers found that agrivoltaics would have a higher initial cost than traditional PV installations, so the government would have to intentionally drive change using the policy, much like an energy efficiency program. As a result, the project team has engaged with the government team that prepared the Ghana Energy Transition Framework, suggesting that a mandatory 5% of all utility scale projects be agrivoltaic. The team also engaged with several PV installers through meetings and project workshops, including a potential agrivoltaic trial collaboration with the country’s largest solar installer.
The project PI received a grant from the Center for Global Equality to advance activities within the Climate Compatible Growth (CCG) program, in which he will receive £55,000 annually for two years to organize CCG activities in Ghana. The project co-PI is also a member of a team that received a €140,000 grant from the Revenue Diversification Pathways in Africa through Bio-based and Circular Agricultural Innovations (DIVAGRI) program, funded by the European Union. In August 2021, the PI and partners from Denmark and Tanzania received a grant for a project entitled “Energy Struggles: renewable energy in Africa.” Francis Kemausuor is the PI on the Ghana side of the project, with his university receiving approximately $395,000. The university’s College of Engineering has also received a grant of one million Canadian dollars (CAD $1 Million) to establish a multidisciplinary Responsible Artificial Intelligence Lab (RAIL) under the AI4D Africa Multidisciplinary Labs project initiated by International Development Research Centre (IDRC). Francis Kemausuor is a member of the team.
The PEER team presented their findings at a variety of events, including a student workshop, the International Conference on Irrigation and Agricultural Development, a stakeholder workshop, and a field visit at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research. A manuscript on their findings is forthcoming.
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