The Vatican is planning a €100 million ($117 million) agrivoltaic plant with an expected capacity of 80 to 90 megawatts.

The project could make Vatican City fully energy self-sufficient while supplying power to other Holy See properties in Rome.

The facility will combine solar generation with agriculture across roughly 200 hectares of a Vatican-owned estate outside Rome.

The Vatican is preparing a €100 million ($117 million) renewable energy project that could supply the Holy See with electricity within two years.

The planned agrivoltaic facility will have an estimated capacity of between 80 and 90 megawatts. At that scale, it would rank among Italy’s largest projects combining solar power with agricultural land use.

The development is planned for the Vatican-owned Santa Maria di Galeria estate on the northwestern outskirts of Rome. The roughly 450-hectare property has housed Vatican Radio transmission equipment since the 1950s.

A joint Italian-Vatican commission met earlier this month to begin work on the development. Italy ratified a bilateral agreement covering the project earlier this year.

Construction, permitting and other administrative procedures could take between 18 and 24 months. Contracts are expected to be offered through tenders in the coming weeks.

Solar power alongside agriculture

Agrivoltaic projects are designed to allow farming and electricity generation to operate on the same land.

Solar panels are typically installed several metres above ground, leaving space for crops and other agricultural activity beneath them. The resulting shade can also reduce water evaporation and offer crops greater protection from extreme weather.

At Santa Maria di Galeria, tracking solar panels could cover about 200 hectares. These systems can adjust their position to follow the sun and increase electricity production through the day.

The project therefore combines the Vatican’s renewable energy requirements with continued agricultural use of a substantial part of the estate.

Vatican targets energy self-sufficiency

Electricity generated by the development would supply Vatican Radio transmission facilities and help make Vatican City fully self-sufficient in energy.

Power could also be directed to properties associated with the Holy See outside the city-state. These include Rome’s Bambino Gesù children’s hospital.

Any surplus electricity would be supplied to Italy.

The arrangement gives the Vatican a direct route to reducing its dependence on externally supplied electricity. It also creates a renewable generation asset capable of serving several operations linked to the Holy See.

The Vatican will not receive the financial incentives available to Italian households and companies that install solar systems.

RELATED ARTICLE: Vatican to Become 8th Country to Achieve 100% Green Energy

However, the bilateral agreement provides the development with the special legal status already granted to the Vatican Radio facilities. This includes exemptions from Italian taxes and public charges.

Italian law also requires implementation of the agreement to impose no additional cost on public finances.

Governance framework clears path for investment

The project brings together religious leadership, government cooperation and infrastructure investment within an unusual cross-border governance structure.

The late Pope Francis promoted the development, while Pope Leo XIV has also backed the project. That continuity provides institutional support as the plan moves from policy approval toward procurement and construction.

The initiative also builds on more than a decade of Vatican investment in solar technology.

In 2008, SolarWorld and SMA Solar Technology donated 2,400 photovoltaic panels and related equipment for the roof of the Vatican’s Nervi Hall. The latest project is substantially larger and moves renewable energy deeper into the Vatican’s operating infrastructure.

For energy and sustainability executives, the project offers another example of agrivoltaics moving beyond pilot-scale deployment. Land constraints, water pressures and competing agricultural needs are increasing interest in technologies that allow clean power and food production to coexist.

If completed on schedule, Santa Maria di Galeria would give the Vatican a high-profile renewable energy asset while adding significant agrivoltaic capacity to Italy’s electricity system. It also places energy independence alongside climate policy as a central element of the Holy See’s sustainability strategy.