By LUSA
Macau-based infrastructure and investment company CESL Asia has announced plans to launch large-scale pilot projects in agro-photovoltaic (AgroPV) technology across Portugal, aiming to position the country’s agricultural regions at the forefront of the green and digital transition.
The intention was expressed during a visit by a high-level delegation from the Intermunicipal Council of the West Region of Portugal (OesteCIM) to the group’s Macau headquarters. The delegation was led by Hermínio José da Cruz Augusto Rodrigues, President of the Alcobaça Municipal Council and of the OesteCIM Intermunicipal Council.
The visiting delegation also included several regional mayors, the President of the Lisbon and Tagus Valley Regional Coordination and Development Commission (CCDR), Teresa Almeida, and Bernardo Pinho, representing AICEP Macau.
According to a press release issued by the company, the meeting focused on opportunities for cooperation in regional development, sustainable agriculture and energy. Group management highlighted the “transformative economic impact that AgroPV can bring to the Portuguese agricultural sector when accompanied by forward-looking policies”.
Agro-photovoltaic technology allows the dual use of land, combining agricultural or livestock production with photovoltaic solar power generation on the same site.
During the discussions, CESL Asia presented details of its AgroPV Demonstration Facility in the Alentejo region, emphasising that land-use optimisation “helps protect national food sovereignty while promoting the development of rural areas”.
The company noted that, given appropriate regulatory frameworks, the technology is estimated to “generate additional revenue of €1,500 to €3,000 per hectare per year for farmers, effectively more than doubling the economic value of rural land”.
To translate this vision into implementation, the group advocated the “urgent need to create a National Programme for AgroPV Pilot Projects within a regulatory sandbox environment”. This framework would allow public and private entities to jointly define “agri-tech models, operations and regulatory best practices suited to Portugal’s reality”.
Integrating AgroPV directly into national strategies for agriculture, energy and digitalisation represents a “strategic lever”, the company stated. Alignment with ongoing investments in the national power grid and data centre infrastructure will “boost regional development, particularly in agricultural regions like the West”.
Founded in 1987, CESL Asia specialises in consultancy services and the management and operation of critical public and private infrastructure.
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