By Alessandro De Carolis and Isabella H. de Carvalho
A statement released on Thursday, May 28, announced that the agreement signed by Italy and the Holy See last year to build an agrivoltaic plant in the Vatican’s Santa Maria di Galeria area, just outside of Rome, has entered into force.
This initiative aims to provide the Vatican City State with renewable energy while preserving agricultural use of the land. The Vatican’s extraterritorial area of Santa Maria di Galeria has hosted Vatican Radio’s transmission facilities since 1957.
The inspiration for the project is rooted in Pope Francis’ encyclical Laudato si’, particularly in the observation that in a world where there is still a “minimal access to clean and renewable energy,” there remains “a need to develop adequate energy storage technologies.”
The stages of the project
Pope Francis himself launched the initiative with the motu proprio Fratello Sole on Jun 26, 2024, instructing the presidents of the Governorate and the Administration of the Patrimony of the Apostolic See (APSA) to carry out the necessary acts in order to build the system.
Subsequently, on Jul 31, 2025, at the Italian Embassy to the Holy See, Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, Secretary for Relations with States and International Organizations, and the Italian Ambassador, Francesco Di Nitto, signed the agreement.
The agreement formally entered into force on Wednesday, May 27, following the completion of the “procedures provided for under Article 5 of the Agreement itself,” the Holy See’s statement said.
Pope Leo: the plant is an example for the world
Less than a year ago, on Jun 19, 2025, during a visit to the Santa Maria di Galeria area, Pope Leo XIV had the opportunity to inspect the space designated for the plant, saying it represented “a wonderful opportunity” and a clear “commitment from the Church” to provide “an example to the world — one that is very important.”
He emphasized then that we are all aware of the effects of climate change, and we must truly care for the entire world, for all of creation, “as Pope Francis has taught so clearly.”
“The greatest possible respect for the land”
From a technical and structural standpoint, the statement released in July of last year on the occasion of the signing ceremony emphasized that the renewable energy plant aims to implement those “solutions which, according to the current state of science and technology, will ensure the greatest possible respect for the land, best reconciling the objectives of preserving the agricultural use of the soil, maintaining the hydrogeological balance of the area, minimizing environmental impact as much as possible, and guaranteeing the protection of the cultural, archaeological, and landscape heritage.” – Vatican News
