Soil suitability and technical-construction criteria for slope classification in agrivoltaic systems

• Framework for establishing soil agricultural suitability to agrivoltaic. • Criteria based on geotechnical, agronomic, solar criteria and APV design. • Slopes below 15% as the most balanced condition for dual agricultural–energy land use. • 15–30% slopes as conditionally suitable for agrivoltaic implementation. Agrivoltaic (APV) systems have emerged as a promising strategy for enabling the simultaneous production of food and electricity. However, the influence of land slope on the feasibility of APV systems remains a literature gap. This study investigates the slope ranges most suitable for APV. Three slope ranges—up to 5%, 5–11%, and 11–38%—were found to be the most prevalent. Land capability and agricultural land suitability indicate slopes of 15% as the upper limit for perennial crops and, in some cases, annual crops, and 20% for planted or natural pastures and forestry. Above 15%, only specialized or lighter agricultural machinery can be used, while slopes greater than 20% are suitable only for natural pastures and forestry. Slopes above 70% serve primarily as shelter and protection for wildlife and natural vegetation. However, findings indicate that slopes between 15% and 30% represent the maximum feasible range for supporting APV systems, depending on the crop type, soil characteristics such as erosion susceptibility, and the APV system design. APV deployment is more constrained by land-use capacity and agricultural suitability than by construction-related limitations. Among the configurations, fence-type vertical PV panels, installed close to the ground, tend to be more adaptable to steeper terrains due to their ease of installation and alignment with land contours.