Italy’s ground-mounted solar land use reached 2,798 hectares in 2025

According to data from Italy’s National Institute for Environmental Protection and Research (ISPRA) and the National Agency for the Protection of the Territory (SNPA), ground-mounted solar installations occupied 2,798 hectares in 2025. This represents an increase from 1,700 hectares in 2024. The figures indicate that solar energy accounted for 27% of the 10,243 hectares of total land consumed in the country during that year.

Five-Year Expansion Trend

Year	Annual Solar Land Additions (hectares)
2021	75
2022	263
2023	420
2024	1,700
2025	2,798

ISPRA and SNPA data show the physical footprint expanding from 0.75 square kilometers in 2021 to 28 square kilometers in 2025.

Regional Distribution and Local Impact

• Puglia holds the largest installed solar area at 4,764 hectares.
• Lazio added 952 hectares and Sicily added 858.5 hectares in 2025.
• These two regions accounted for nearly 65% of 2025 solar land additions.
• Other 2025 additions included 189 hectares in Piedmont, 145 in Puglia, and 136 in Sardinia.
• Viterbo province saw a 969-hectare increase in land consumption in 2025.
• Municipal solar increases included 319 hectares in Tuscania, 316 in Montalto di Castro, and 198 in Catania.

Broader Land Consumption Context

Italy’s total land consumption rose 22.4% in 2025 compared to 2024, according to ISPRA and SNPA. This expansion resulted in a net land consumption of 9,497 hectares after accounting for 746 hectares of restored land. In Lazio, the relative land increase reached 1.01% of the existing artificial surface area.

Data centers consumed 13 hectares, primarily in Lombardy, while wind power occupied 118 hectares in 2025. A key distinction in these metrics is that solar represents reversible land consumption, whereas infrastructure like buildings and roads is permanent.

What to watch

The total ground-mounted solar footprint now stands at 21,368 hectares for 12,570 MW of capacity, according to ISPRA and SNPA. However, 448.5 hectares of low-density and agrivoltaic solar are excluded from these consumed land counts. Terna data reveals a significant pipeline: 54,365 MW of projects have received environmental approval, while 10,263 MW have signed grid contracts requiring over 10,260 hectares. 515 MW of advanced agrivoltaic projects are funded by the National Recovery and Resilience Plan.

The Italian Constitutional Court’s ruling No. 127/2026 upheld restrictions on solar installations on agricultural land. Meanwhile, battery storage is expanding rapidly, with 76,000 MW approved and 9,600 MW contracted for standalone BESS, though ISPRA and SNPA have not estimated the land area required for these installations.

For developers seeking alternatives to ground-mounted expansion, ISPRA and SNPA identify a potential rooftop solar capacity of 140 GW to 193 GW across 1,116 square kilometers. Local land use pressures also persist outside the solar sector, with non-solar land increases recorded in Rome (74 hectares), Foggia (72), Cerignola (53), and Campagna (51).