Saudi Arabia’s Prince Mohammed bin Salman Royal Reserve (Pmbsrr) has introduced a breeding herd of 38 Sand gazelles into an operational 250 MW solar facility, as part of a wildlife conservation initiative. This follows a seven-month proof-of-concept (PoC) exercise that investigated whether solar installations could serve as breeding habitats for threatened wildlife.

“The facility’s size and predator-proof fences allow the gazelles to acclimatize, with few disturbances,” the team said in a working paper seen by pv magazine. “The shade beneath solar panels improves animal welfare and reproductive success. There was no damage to infrastructure, operational conflicts, or behavioral issues.”

The solar facility covers 505 hectares across three fenced sections, 370 hectares of which are suitable for animal husbandry. The pilot is taking place in a 157-hectare section housing a 66 MW solar array.

The researchers report that ground temperatures beneath the panels are 5 C to 10 C lower than in exposed areas. The first births are expected this winter, while population modeling suggests the reserve’s Sand gazelle population could increase from 109 to 600 animals by 2031 using the three solar sections.

The reserve’s broader rewilding program, ReWild Arabia, requires large founder populations of threatened species, creating a need for extensive husbandry facilities where animals can acclimatize, breed, and develop natural herd behaviors before release into the wild. The ReWildingVoltaics initiative uses solar parks to provide large, predator-proof enclosures, the team explained, while reducing the need for additional breeding infrastructure and freeing up resources for habitat restoration.

Pmbsrr developed the project in partnership with Amaala Sustainable Company for Energy (ASCE).

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