From “Solar-First” to “Agriculture-First”: A Decade of Reflection on Agrivoltaics

Agrivoltaics — a concept repeatedly highlighted in policy documents and continuously supported by the capital market — was originally envisioned as an ideal model where “one piece of land creates two sources of income.”

At its core, this vision can be summarized in four words: dual use of land.

However, the foundation of this “dual use” model is simple: agriculture must come first.

Yet when we visit many agrivoltaic projects that have been operating for three, five, or even more years, the reality is often very different: land beneath photovoltaic panels is abandoned and overgrown with weeds, or crops suffer from poor growth and disappointing yields.

Why has the promised “integration” between agriculture and photovoltaics turned into a conflict between the two?

This article not only reviews the challenges and lessons learned from the industry’s development journey but also shares the methodology that 5D TECH has developed through years of practical experience — a pathway toward true coexistence and mutual growth between agriculture and solar energy.

01

The Detours Agrivoltaics Has Taken

To understand today’s challenges, we need to return to the early stage of large-scale agrivoltaic development in China.

Around 2015, as land availability for large-scale ground-mounted photovoltaic projects became increasingly limited, combined with national initiatives such as poverty alleviation and rural revitalization, the concept of “solar + agriculture” attracted significant attention.

Large numbers of projects were rapidly launched across China, particularly in major agricultural provinces such as Shandong, Hebei, Jiangsu, and Anhui.

The industry was enthusiastic, but one fundamental issue was overlooked from the beginning:

The logic behind product selection was mismatched with agricultural needs.

At that time, most projects adopted conventional crystalline silicon photovoltaic modules. These modules were originally designed for large-scale solar farms and rooftop PV systems, where the primary goal is maximizing electricity generation per unit area.

For pure power generation applications, this approach is entirely reasonable.

However, once these modules were installed above farmland, the conflicts quickly became apparent.

The First Challenge: Lack of Transparency

Standard crystalline silicon modules are completely opaque. Large-scale installation above farmland effectively creates a “metal roof” over crops.

Sunlight is blocked almost entirely, preventing plants from receiving sufficient light for photosynthesis, leading to poor crop growth.

The industry attempted a compromise solution — increasing the spacing between panels to allow sunlight to pass through gaps.

However, this created the second challenge:

The Second Challenge: Uneven Light Distribution

Sunlight passing through gaps between panels creates alternating areas of light and shadow, often described as the “zebra effect.”

Throughout the day, these light patterns continuously move across the ground. A single plant may experience repeated cycles of intense sunlight exposure followed by deep shade.

For many crops, this unstable lighting environment can be more damaging than consistent low light. It disrupts photosynthetic rhythms, causes leaf and fruit damage, and affects normal growth.

More importantly, many projects prioritized maximizing electricity output and designed panel layouts based mainly on energy generation targets rather than crop requirements.

In reality, these projects achieved only half of the goal of “dual land use”:

The land was used, but only for solar generation. Agriculture was sacrificed.

This was not an isolated problem but a systematic industry deviation.

We are not questioning the value of crystalline silicon technology — its contribution to renewable energy development is undeniable. However, when the application scenario changes fundamentally, the technology selection philosophy must also evolve.

Using a power-generation mindset to design agricultural systems was the wrong starting point.

Over the years, many agrivoltaic projects reached a situation where:

“The solar panels remained, but agriculture disappeared.”

Issues emerged including land-use disputes, failure to meet agricultural requirements, and difficulties in long-term operation and maintenance. Some regions even introduced stricter approval requirements for agrivoltaic projects.

The industry paid a significant price for these lessons.

02

5D TECH’s Reflection: What Does “Agriculture First” Really Mean?

Recognizing the root causes of these challenges, 5D TECH established a fundamental principle when entering the agrivoltaics sector:

Agriculture must come before photovoltaics.

This is not merely a slogan. It represents a guiding philosophy throughout technology selection, product design, and project evaluation.

It includes three key principles:

1. Solar Technology Must Serve Agriculture — Not Replace It

The first measure of a successful agrivoltaic project is not how much electricity it generates.

The real questions are:

• Are crops growing normally beneath the panels?

• Are yields maintained or improved?

• Is agricultural value being enhanced?

Without these outcomes, even high electricity generation cannot achieve the true purpose of agrivoltaics.

2. Technology Selection Must Start from Crop Requirements

Through cooperation with agricultural research institutions worldwide, we discovered an important fact:

Plants do not require all sunlight equally.

Different crops utilize specific wavelengths of light for photosynthesis. For example:

• Blue light (around 450 nm)

• Red light (around 660 nm)

are key drivers of photosynthetic activity.

Meanwhile, excessive direct sunlight, ultraviolet radiation, and certain infrared wavelengths may create stress for plants, causing leaf damage, fruit sunburn, and reduced photosynthetic efficiency.

Different crops have different needs:

• Tomatoes and peppers require strong photosynthetically active radiation.

• Lettuce and medicinal plants prefer softer, diffused light.

• Fruit trees require protection from intense afternoon sunlight during fruit development.

Therefore, photovoltaic modules should not simply be “light-blocking panels.”

They should become tools for spectrum management.

3. Agricultural Value Is the Foundation of the Project

Electricity revenue is important, but a healthy agrivoltaic project must ensure that agriculture itself remains economically viable.

Only when agriculture is stable, replicable, and profitable can agrivoltaic projects achieve long-term success and large-scale adoption.

This philosophy explains why 5D TECH has focused on transparent CdTe thin-film photovoltaic glass technology.

Through advanced semiconductor materials and coating processes, thin-film solar technology enables precise control of different light wavelengths.

Simply put:

We can create a customized “optical filter” for crops — allowing beneficial wavelengths required for photosynthesis to pass through while converting unnecessary or harmful wavelengths into electricity.

This approach improves the agricultural environment by creating:

• More balanced lighting

• Softer illumination

• Better alignment with crop photosynthetic requirements

Compared with traditional crystalline silicon modules, CdTe thin-film photovoltaic technology offers a unique advantage:

Customizable transparency and uniform, diffused light transmission.

Depending on crop requirements, 5D TECH can provide solutions with different transparency levels, such as:

• 10%

• 20%

• 40%

• Higher transparency options

Like a “light filter,” the system delivers the right amount of useful light to crops while simultaneously generating clean electricity.

This is our understanding of true agrivoltaics:

Not a competition between solar panels and crops, but precise cooperation between renewable energy and agriculture.

One piece of land. Two sources of value. Agriculture first.

03

Turning Philosophy into Data: What Have We Achieved?

Concepts alone are not enough. Real results must be proven through data.

Over recent years, 5D TECH has conducted extensive field-based research and validation.

Research Collaboration with Colorado State University, USA

In the United States, we collaborated with the Department of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture at Colorado State University on a three-year field study.

This research represents one of the few repeated controlled field experiments in the agrivoltaics sector.

The study compared:

• Traditional opaque polycrystalline silicon modules

• Bifacial monocrystalline silicon modules

• 40% transparent CdTe modules from 5D TECH

Six common crops were tested, including:

• Sweet peppers

• Jalapeños

• Lettuce

• Zucchini

• Tomatoes

with full-sun farmland as the control group.

After two complete growing seasons, the results showed:

Under CdTe modules, average crop yields were equal to or higher than the full-sun control group, while crops under crystalline silicon modules generally experienced yield reductions.

The research has been published on international academic platforms, and we will share detailed findings in future articles.

Agricultural Demonstration Base in Hangzhou, China

In China, 5D TECH has partnered with agricultural experts from Zhejiang University to establish an agrivoltaic demonstration project in Luniu Town, Yuhang District, Hangzhou.

The project focuses on local specialty crops:

• Pear orchards

• Tea plantations

Three types of CdTe modules are being tested:

• Opaque modules

• 20% transparent modules

• 40% transparent modules

The project evaluates the impact of different transparency levels on:

• Tree growth

• Fruit quality

• Tea production

The system has been installed and is operating steadily. Continuous monitoring is underway, with official results expected in the second half of 2026.