Generate renewable energy on farmland and double land use for higher yields!

H2arvester is a circular energy system for the local generation and utilization of renewable energy, using abundant farmland without loss of crop production.
H2arvester’s solar cars are arranged in a matrix of solar panels and move autonomously across farmland of arable farmers, dairy farmers, and across ditches. Because the solar panels are mobile, H2arvester can be seen as an ‘extra crop’ in the rotary cultivation of arable farmers and tulip bulb growers. For dairy farmers, where the H2arvester solar cars “rotate” with the grazing and/or drive over ditches, this literally means double use of farmland with additional income, at a maximum land use of 10% per hectare.
The output of the solar panels can be used directly on the farms, fed back into the grid, stored in batteries and/or converted into green hydrogen (H2). Through local storage of the energy, the production as well as own use of generated energy can be balanced, without overloading the power grid. The hydrogen supply can also be supplied to third parties, such as agricultural cooperatives, energy cooperatives, industry, or one’s own village.
The agricultural business is at the intersection, the sweet spot, of the sustainability challenges for the rural area: renewable energy, improved soil health and better revenue models.

Circular energy and sustainable food production

H2arvester presents a circular energy model designed for a local and/or regional economy, emphasising a local-for-local and scale-by-scale approach. Regional employment is paramount and aligns with the “short chain” concept: local producers add value to the environment and short chains help achieve the ambitions for circular agriculture.
This offers a unique opportunity, in addition to large-scale energy production, to contribute at the local and regional level to the energy transition to renewable energy and a sustainable economy. This also includes an improved revenue model for farmers!
The agricultural farm is an ideal location for building the circular energy model because of its ability to produce not only energy but also heat “in the scale of the region,” which can be used locally throughout the seasons.

H2arvester solarcar

Key points

-agripv
-agrivoltaics
-duallanduse
-mobile
-autonomous
-agrobots

+sensor platform
+drip irrigation
+scanning weeding
+crop monitoring
+soil monitoring
+single or tandems

Who is H2arvester

H2arvester Systems BV is an enterprise dedicated to research, development, and implementation of mobile and autonomous agrivoltaic systems and agrirobotics. The company is a collaboration between npk design BV in Leiden (NL) and L’orèl Consultancy BV in Groningen (NL).

H2arvester Systems possesses the necessary qualifications for energy research, technical development, pilot facilitation, and production outsourcing.

H2arvester won the RVO competition ‘Solar power in agricultural areas’ at the end of 2017.

Selected Dutch agricultural mechanisation companies, preferably local, are contracted for the production, installation, and maintenance of the mobile solar systems.
In the realisation of electrical systems, hydrogen production, and storage systems, we collaborate with established system suppliers and market leaders in these industries.

H2arvester is prize winner
Rob Jacobs
energy specialist
L’orèl Consultancy
jacobs@lorel.nl
06-55 378 188

“The solution to convert the generated kWh directly into hydrogen not only provides an autonomous production plant, but is also a solution to the need to balance the production and use of generated energy without worrying about reinforcements of the electricity network.”

Wouter Veefkind
specialist climate and energy
LTO Noord
wveefkind@ltonoord.nl
06-22 693 944

“Because of my work for the agricultural organization I work on innovations that encourage multifunctional land use. Because the solar power plant is mobile, it can for example be seen as an additional crop in rotational cultivation that many arable farmers use. In the variant where the installation “crawls over the land”, there is literally…

Marcel Vroom
industrial designer
npk design
mvroom@npk.nl
06-22 465 161

“They are movable arrays of solar panels, assembled on lightweight structures and supported on wheels, moving in pre-defined directions. The solar energy is processed into hydrogen (H2) and stored locally. Hydrogen supply is used locally when needed; for example, the surplus is delivered to a dairy processor.”

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