Pope Francis had a dream that the Vatican would run entirely on green energy. He wanted to highlight the need “to make a transition to a sustainable development model that reduces greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere, setting the goal of climate neutrality.” To model what this could look like, he announced that solar panels would be installed on a Vatican-owned property outside Rome, and the power generated from that could supply all of Vatican City’s energy needs.
The future installation would be projected to “ensure, not only the power supply of the radio station existing there, but also the complete energy support of Vatican City State,” he wrote.
Fast forward to 2025, and the project is completed. Italian energy supplier ACEA installed the photovoltaic roof in just six months in the Courtyard of the Corazze entrance. “The most difficult thing is to integrate and find spaces to build photovoltaic infrastructure in places that are already heavily built up,” said ACEA president, Barbara Marinali. “This is an extraordinary example of how you can think, imagine, and build a system that integrates with an infrastructure that already exists.”
What are agrivoltaics? Agrivoltaics involves the dual use of land for solar energy production and agriculture. They are built with a series of solar panels that coexist with crops, livestock or both. Sometimes the solar arrays are situated on top of greenhouses, interwoven among crops, or elevated plants.
Where is the Vatican’s solar installation located? The agrivoltaic plant is situated on the Holy See’s property at Santa Maria di Galeria on the outskirts of Rome. The 1000+ acre site is a good match for the agrivoltaic plant, as it was already the location for Vatican Radio transmission facilities for digital broadcasting. Now the new plant can power the Vatican Radio with the larger goal to contribute to “the complete energy sustenance of Vatican City State.”
What was the genesis for the move to solar? In 2015 Pope Francis wrote in a letter named Laudato Si’ that “there is a strong scientific consensus indicating a troubling warming of the climate system. In recent decades, this warming has been accompanied by a steady rise in sea levels and an increase in extreme weather events.” The Pope explained he wanted to “renew the dialogue” on how we are “building the future of the planet.”
What formal steps did the Vatican take to show its support for climate action? In 2022, the Vatican joined the efforts inherent in the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, which contributed “to the efforts of all states to offer, in accordance with their respective responsibilities and capacities, an adequate response to the challenges posed to humanity and our common home by climate change.” The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, a global agreement among nations to address “dangerous human interference with the climate system.”
How did the “Fratello sole” jumpstart the Vatican’s move toward solar power? “Fratello sole” or “Brother Sun” was Pope Francis’ Apostolic Letter that detailed how solar power is an invitation for people around the world to make lifestyle changes to counter global warming and the “pervasive” use of fossil fuels. Humans have “the technological means to deal with this environmental transformation and its pernicious ethical, social, economic and political consequences,” Pope Francis wrote, and, among these, “solar energy plays a key role.”
Who spearheaded the project? Pope Francis appointed two special commissioners to start work on building the agrivoltaic system: the president of the commission governing Vatican City State, Cardinal Fernando Vérgez Alzaga, and the president of the Administration of the Patrimony of the Holy See (APSA), Archbishop Giordano Piccinotti.
Are there other countries that run on 100% renewable energy? Yes. Vatican City has joined Albania, Bhutan, Nepal, Paraguay, Iceland, Ethiopia and the Democratic Republic of Congo to become one of just eight countries in the world to generate 100% of its electricity from renewable sources.
Other Catholic Initiatives that Model the Transition to Renewable Energy
Several church organizations around the world are making the move to solar.
Solar lights have significantly improved the daily lives of over 9,000 households in Malawi, especially in areas with no access to electricity,” said Sr. Bernadette Mnyenyembe, Superior General of the Sisters of the Holy Rosary Congregation (MSHR). The non-profit organization, Watts of Love has distributed the lights and also empowered people to use the money saved from buying batteries, candles, or paraffin to start businesses or other activities that improve their lives.
Another project is Lumen TV-Z, the official Catholic television station in Zambia, which received a significant boost with the installation of an 11 KVA solar power system worth 270,000 Kwacha (approximately $9,815). The solar system was donated by GEI Power Limited and addresses the country’s ongoing electricity challenges.
A diocese in the Philippines made national headlines when the Vatican cited its efforts as one of the best practices in harnessing the sun to power all of its parishes. The Maasin diocese was recognized as the first in the world to equip its churches with solar panels. By installing solar panels in our 42 parish churches, the diocese will try to avoid 191 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions over the next 25 years through the generation of solar power.
Catholic Energies provides expertise to design, implement, and finance sustainable projects that reduce energy costs, enabling other Catholic organizations to use those savings in support of their critical ministries.
Final Thoughts
It’s not just the Catholic Church and the Holy See that are transitioning their parishes to renewable energy sources like solar. Sometimes it just takes some creative thinking to pull the pieces together, however.
Most houses of worship don’t pay taxes, so they aren’t eligible to receive renewable energy tax benefits. But third parties that can benefit from the credits have sometimes been helping out. The investors can buy and install solar panels on a church, and the congregation can power from the investor. No, the congregation doesn’t own the solar panels, but they get to reap the benefits.
The federal Inflation Reduction Act had provisions for tax-exempt organizations like houses of worship to get tax credits for renewable projects. Called direct pay, the program provides them with a tax credit worth up to 30% of the installation cost. That cost savings had been a powerful incentive to persuade congregations to consider solar. Now, of course, with the IRA decimated by the Trump administration and the words “climate change” wiped from all federal websites, the status of lots of renewable energy projects is tenuous.
Working at the intersection of religion and renewables isn’t always easy. But the rewards transcend individual buildings and help entire communities to learn about solar.
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