Sustainable Agrivoltaic Technologies and Energy Storage Systems

The present era plagued by energy crisis and climate change has seen emerging paradigms of sustainable agrivoltaic systems and energy storage systems that have attempted to bridge clean energy access and agricultural productivity. This book chapter address the convergence of agrivoltaic systems that has spurred solar energy and agricultural production, and advanced energy storage technologies. The convergence of these frontiers has demonstrated the immense potential of agrivoltaic resolving the long-standing dilemma of competition between renewable energy and agricultural land use infrastructure. Pilot projects within East Africa and beyond on diverse agro-climatic regions have demonstrated that agrivoltaic systems potentially; (1) enhance crop resilience through microclimate modifications, (2) increase land productivity by over 40%, (3) reduce grid dependency by enhancing the distribution of renewable energy, (4) and employment creation across farming communities. Nonetheless, the development of infrastructure from laboratory proof-of-concept to large-scale commercialization demand equitable funding mechanisms, institutional innovation, technological innovation, and policy frameworks. This book emphasizes that in order to realize the full potential of agrivoltaic systems, energy storage systems represent a critical bridge between energy demand patterns and energy availability. As the global economies strive to attain sustainable agrivoltaic systems and energy storage system, energy poor communities remain disenfranchised whereas wealthy nations enjoy connection to centralised grids. This represents form of energy injustices and loss of opportunity in enabling rural electrification, livelihood improvement, and improving agricultural production in communities trapped by energy poverty.