Agrivoltaic Land Equivalent Ratio Calculator

Calculate agrivoltaic land equivalent ratio by comparing agrivoltaic PV and crop yields against their standalone baselines.

Annual energy from a PV-only array on the site in megawatt-hours per hectare.
Annual energy from the agrivoltaic system on the same land area.
Expected crop yield without panels, in tonnes per hectare.
Measured crop yield under the array, in tonnes per hectare.

Decision-support tool. Validate agronomic and energy baselines with field measurements and independent engineering review before project approvals.

Examples

  • Reference PV 1,400 MWh/ha vs agrivoltaic PV 1,225 MWh/ha; reference crop 12.5 t/ha vs agrivoltaic crop 11.3 t/ha ⇒ LER = 0.88 (0.88 PV + 0.90 crop), trailing parity with 0.12 headroom.
  • Reference PV 1,300 MWh/ha vs agrivoltaic PV 1,170 MWh/ha; reference crop 10.0 t/ha vs agrivoltaic crop 10.8 t/ha ⇒ LER = 1.89 (0.90 PV + 1.08 crop), outperforming monoculture by 0.89.

FAQ

What does an LER greater than 1 mean?

An LER above 1 indicates the agrivoltaic site produces more combined value than dedicating the same land solely to PV or solely to crops. Values below 1 signal underperformance against a monoculture baseline.

How sensitive is LER to reference assumptions?

LER scales with the reference PV and crop yields you choose. Use site-specific benchmarks or bankable feasibility estimates so the ratio reflects realistic alternatives, not idealized lab conditions.

Can I include livestock output instead of crops?

Yes. Replace crop yield inputs with forage or livestock productivity metrics, as long as both reference and agrivoltaic values share the same unit so the ratio remains dimensionless.

Additional Information

  • Result unit: dimensionless land equivalent ratio; parity with monoculture occurs at 1.00.
  • PV and crop components are calculated separately to reveal which side of the system drives gains or losses.
  • Headroom shows how far the combined system sits from parity when LER is below 1.00.

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