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Agrivoltaics Grants

Colorado State Representative Karen McCormick, CO State Senator Chris Hansen, Agriculture Commissioner Kate Greenberg stand in agrivoltaic solar garden while Governor Jared Polis signs Senate Bill 23-092
Colorado State Representative Karen McCormick, Colorado State Senator Chris Hansen, Agriculture Commissioner Kate Greenberg stand in agrivoltaic solar garden while Governor Jared Polis signs Senate Bill 23-092.

Through Senate Bill 23-092, the Colorado state legislature appropriated $500,000 to distribute as agrivoltaics grants in Fiscal Year 2023-24 to support Colorado producers and help Colorado’s clean energy transition. These grants should “conduct a new or ongoing demonstration or research project as a means to study the potential, benefits, and tradeoffs of agrivoltaics in the state."

After a public application period, CDA created a Steering Committee that helped design grant guidelines and advise the department on the program. 

A second round of $500,000 of funding was approved for Fiscal Year 2024-25 through the Long Appropriations Bill. Read the press release about last year's awarded projects.

This program is separate from CDA’s existing Advancing Colorado’s Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency (ACRE3) Program.

 

 

Agrivoltaics Research and Demonstration Grant

APPLICATION OPEN for Fiscal Year 2025-26! Our Grant Guidelines for FY26 are now available. Please view the Grant Application for FY26 here. 

This grant encourages innovative projects, including demonstrations of agrivoltaics, research projects, and outreach campaigns to further agrivoltaics and Colorado’s agricultural economy.

Eligible project types include:

  • Planning and/or permitting of agrivoltaics demonstration projects,
  • Construction of agrivoltaics demonstration projects, 
  • Expansion of existing demonstration projects of agrivoltaic systems, 
  • Research, monitoring and/or analysis of an agrivoltaic demonstration project,
  • Outreach and communication projects promoting results found from agrivoltaics demonstration projects,
  • Other projects that further the research and demonstration of agrivoltaics projects.
     

We will host an informational webinar about the grant requirements and application process. We will also host an "office hours" session for interested applicants to ask questions about their projects. 

Awarded Projects To Date

Map of awarded agrivoltaics projects. Please click on the link to view an accessible version of the map.

Visit our Agrivoltaics Research & Demonstration Projects StoryMap to learn more about about completed projects. 

A tractor seeds in-between solar panels on a plot of land retrofitted for solar grazing by Namaste Solar (FY24 Awardee).
A tractor seeds in-between solar panels on a plot of land retrofitted for solar grazing by Namaste Solar (FY24 Awardee)

2024-25 Awarded Projects 

  • Colorado State University (Bousselot Lab) will install an agrivoltaics research, demonstration, and outreach plot that features raspberries grown under solar panels at the highly visible, publicly accessible CSU Spur campus (Denver).
  • AgriSolar Consulting will build dynamic tools, resources, and technical assistance opportunities for improved Colorado producer and agricultural landowner access to agrivoltaics resources and opportunities (statewide).
  • Cloudbreak Energy will incorporate solar with the large-scale growth of hay, multi-species cover crops, and pollinator habitats (Greeley).
  • Colorado State University (Caspari Lab) will assess the impacts of agrivoltaics on grape yield, fruit quality, and vineyard microclimate in the hot, semi-arid growing region of Western Colorado, and energy production and value (Grand Junction).
  • Uneva Energy Group will explore the feasibility and benefits of deploying agrivoltaics in beef feedlots, focusing on economic analysis, animal welfare improvements, and energy cost impacts (statewide).
  • Talbott’s Farm will install sensors and data loggers to monitor and analyze the impact of a dynamic agrivoltaic system over an existing peach orchard (Palisade). 

Agrivoltaic Steering Committee

Byron Kominek, Colorado Agrivoltaic Learning Center / Jack's Solar Garden
Ellen Kutzer, Colorado Solar and Storage Association
Jordan Macknick, National Renewable Energy Association
Duncan Gilchrist, The Nature Conservancy
Meg Caley, Sprout City Farms
Bob Wagner, Farmer, Wagner Charolais and Gene Check, Inc.
Nathan Troudt, Farmer
Alan Knapp, Colorado State University
Tyler Garrett, Rocky Mountain Farmers Union
John Caven, Farmer
Zach Riley, Colorado Livestock Association
Mark Uchanski, Colorado State University
Darrell Littlefield, L7 Ranch LLC

State Staff
Kristen Boysen, Lead
Sam Anderson, Advisor
Cindy Lair, Advisor 

Three rows of bifacial solar panels stand in a field of corn at the ARDEC site, constructed by Sandbox Solar (FY24 Awardee).
Three rows of bifacial solar panels stand in a field of corn at the ARDEC site.