Anseong breaks ground on first community-led agrivoltaic project

A community-led agrivoltaic project that combines farming with solar power generation without damaging agricultural land has officially launched in Anseong, Gyeonggi Province. It is the first case in which a village cooperative directly manages every stage of such a venture and channels the proceeds into resident welfare and community development.

The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs held a groundbreaking ceremony and on-site forum Thursday at Songjuk Village in Hyeonmae-ri, Anseong, marking the start of a pilot agrivoltaic project for the Greater Seoul area.

Agrivoltaic farming involves installing solar panels above farmland so that crops can be grown underneath while electricity is generated simultaneously. What sets this project apart is that the village cooperative leads the entire process — from leasing the site and obtaining permits to selecting a contractor and managing operations and revenue after completion.

The initiative follows a resident-driven "sunshine income village" model designed to sustain agricultural output while returning power-generation revenue to farmers, boosting household incomes and revitalizing the rural community.

From the project's earliest stages, the ministry ran an advisory panel that brought together local governments, the Korea Rural Community Corporation, the Korea Energy Agency and private-sector experts.

During the cooperative's formation, the ministry helped draft its articles of association. At the site-acquisition stage, it assisted with a farmland lease contract through the Korea Rural Community Corporation's land reserve program. It also supported the various permitting procedures — including power generation and land development approvals — and facilitated coordination with local authorities.

Once completed, Songjuk Village will operate a 1 MW solar power facility. Revenue from electricity sales is earmarked for a community fund covering shared meals for residents and welfare programs for the elderly.

The ministry said it will support an early groundbreaking for a separate pilot project in Hwaseong and, building on the results of both sites, plans to expand the community-led agrivoltaic model nationwide.

Kim Jeong-uk, director general for agricultural industry innovation policy at the ministry, said the Anseong groundbreaking was "the first step toward making the agrivoltaic model a reality — one that protects farmland while creating new income sources for farming households and villages." He added that the ministry would "continuously reflect the voices from pilot project sites to strengthen institutional support."