The exploitation of solar power in combination with agriculture still has many limitations

To make the most of the land in production, the model of agricultural production with solar power is being applied in a number of businesses and households. Many solar power plants take advantage of the area below solar panels to cultivate and breed.
Mr. Nguyen Quoc Khanh, an independent energy expert, said: “Solar energy can be exploited without much impact on agricultural production and not necessarily land acquisition”. However, the reality shows that at present, this model is still facing many difficulties and has not achieved high efficiency.

In Ninh Thuan province, the Cyclic Energy Solution Company (CAS Company) is applying the model of goat farming and experimental planting of trees under panels at 3ha large solar farm. However, Mr. Tran Anh Dong, Director of CAS Company, said: “The company’s main revenue is from solar power, while the revenue from agricultural production is still low. Currently, the company is still struggling in finding high-yield crops suitable for the conditions to be planted under solar panels ”. According to Nguyen Quoc Khanh, the model of solar power combined with agriculture has great potential, both increasing the efficiency of land use and creating more income for farmers. However, at present, this model still has many limitations such as: Not meeting farm economic criteria, no support mechanism for solar power, lack of information on suitable crops, no technical guidance, lack of practical model … In order for this model to really promote its effectiveness, the State needs more mechanisms and policies to help businesses overcome the above problems.