2026.08.03. 15:06:21 | Park Ji-hoon, Suncheon
https://en.sedaily.com/society/2026/08/03/agrivoltaics-leader-paru-launches-ai-based-agriculture
Image of Paru’s AI precision cultivation management-based integrated solution for agrivoltaics. Photo courtesy of Paru – Seoul Economic Daily Society News from South Korea
Paru, an agrivoltaics solution company headquartered in Suncheon, Jeonnam-Gwangju Integrated Special City, is embarking on the development of an AI-based agriculture-energy integrated solution.
Paru announced on the 3rd that it had been selected for the “AI Applied Product Rapid Commercialization Support Program in the Agriculture and Food Sector,” promoted by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and the Korea Agriculture Technology Promotion Agency. Paru will serve as the lead company in the project. AKIS and Huintech will participate as partner companies.
The consortium will develop an “integrated solution for improving agricultural productivity through AI-based precision cultivation management and variable shading in agrivoltaics.” The total project cost is 2.857 billion won, of which 2 billion won is state funding.
Notably, this project does not stop at the research and development stage. The goal is to create products and services that can actually be supplied to the market within one year from the agreement date.
The Paru consortium is pursuing the commercialization of three products: an AI-linked single-axis tracking agrivoltaic power generation system, an AI-based integrated crop-power generation control solution, and an open-field smart farm IoT integrated package.
The systems being developed differ from existing methods. Rather than managing solar power generation and crop cultivation separately, they analyze power generation output, crop growth, soil, weather, and irrigation data on a single AI platform.
The AI determines the crop growth stage and the amount of sunlight required. Based on this, it adjusts the angle of the solar panels. It also analyzes soil moisture and weather conditions to automatically supply the appropriate amount of water to areas that need it.
Roles have also been divided.
Paru oversees the entire project. It is also responsible for the single-axis tracking solar power generation system, panel angle control, and ESS-linked facilities.
AKIS develops the AI integrated control platform. The platform performs crop growth stage identification, yield prediction, and irrigation volume calculation.
Huintech builds the autonomous crop monitoring robot, open-field IoT sensors, and drip irrigation automatic control system.
Paru is also leveraging its existing field experience.
Previously, Paru supplied a 1MW-class single-axis tracking agrivoltaic system in Yeonggwang County. It also directly built and operated a 400kW-class agrivoltaic demonstration complex in Yeongam County.
Through these projects, Paru said it has verified structural stability, drive reliability, and communication and control performance in large-scale array environments.
In this project, Paru plans to add AI-based variable shading, autonomous disaster prevention, and energy management functions. Through this, it intends to enhance the completeness of the commercial products.
The demonstration will be conducted at Paru’s demonstration complex in the Jeonnam region. The target crops are onions and garlic.
The consortium will collect data throughout the entire growth period, from sowing to harvest. Crop imagery, soil moisture, weather, solar radiation, and power generation output are among the main data to be collected. It will then verify the impact of the panel angle and irrigation volume calculated by the AI on agricultural productivity and power generation efficiency.
Paru is also pursuing an expansion of its business structure through this project. The plan is to broaden its scope from a focus on existing solar tracking devices and power generation facilities to the field of AI agriculture-energy integrated solutions.
Going forward, Paru plans to combine not only power generation facility sales but also AI control platform subscriptions, farming data services, remote maintenance, and O&M businesses.
“This project will serve as an opportunity for Paru to combine AI and smart farming technology with the solar tracking technology it has accumulated,” a Paru official said. “We will complete a field-centered solution that contributes not only to power generation revenue but also to the stable production of crops and the reduction of the labor burden on farming households.”