Along the A24 highway, at kilometer 8.1, Renexia Services built a 210 kWp photovoltaic system for Strada dei Parchi, installed entirely on existing roofs. No land was occupied, and no new structures were built—just surfaces that were already there and now generate energy. The system has been operational since August 24, 2026.

What was built

Above the canopy covering the toll lanes at the Roma Est Toll Plaza—approximately 135 meters long and 12 meters wide—and above the canopy of the Lunghezza Station parking lot, 466 monocrystalline 450 Wp photovoltaic modules were installed, for a total capacity of 210 kWp. The panels rest on steel structures anchored to the existing roofs, which have been verified to withstand the additional loads. Running beneath them are the electrical conduits, DC field panels, power distribution panels, and inverters that make the energy usable by the toll plaza’s systems. A ground-mounted solar array with the same capacity would have required 0.2 hectares of land.

Designing a construction site that doesn’t disrupt infrastructure

The most stringent design constraint was not technical but operational: the toll plaza could not be closed. Each phase of assembly was planned to coexist with traffic passing beneath the canopies, work at height, and the presence of live electrical components during the final stages of construction. Renexia Services managed the project from planning through on-site supervision, entrusting the turnkey construction to Essesolar, while construction management and safety coordination were handled by Infraengineering of the Toto Group. Work began on June 8, and the system was operational by August 24: just over two months, with no interruptions to highway service.

Distributed generation where energy is consumed

The system powers the electrical loads at the toll plaza and station areas—lighting, toll collection systems, and technological and monitoring equipment—which operate 24 hours a day. In this initial phase, it operates in island mode, that is, solely for self-consumption, while waiting for the grid operator to complete the connection activation.

This configuration is what makes these projects efficient: energy is produced just a few meters from the loads it is meant to serve. This reduces transmission losses, stabilizes energy costs for a continuously operating facility, and eases the demand on the local grid. A highway toll plaza, with constant and predictable consumption throughout the year, has a consumption profile that pairs well with solar power generation.

The innovation lies in the “where,” not the “how.”

The technology used in East Rome is mature and proven. The innovative element is the choice of site: taking a built-up area intended for an entirely different purpose—toll lanes and parking spaces—and giving it a second function without taking away its primary one. This is a direction the sector is exploring with growing interest, because it addresses the main challenge facing photovoltaic development in Italy, which is not the availability of technology but that of space. Areas associated with transportation infrastructure—bus shelters, service areas, parking lots, and sound barriers—offer an estimated potential on a national scale in the order of gigawatts; these areas are already paved, already connected to the electrical grid, and already maintained. This renewable energy does not compete with agriculture nor does it alter the landscape.

A Model that can be replicated across networks

Roma Est has the characteristics of an industrial prototype rather than an isolated project. The sequence of steps followed—structural inspection of the roof, exposure analysis, mapping of local energy consumption, and planning of the construction site around the ongoing operation of the infrastructure—can be replicated at any site with similar conditions, and the Italian highway networks have many such sites. For Renexia Services, the value of the project lies above all here: in the expertise to integrate renewable energy systems into complex operational contexts, where the client cannot afford service interruptions and where construction site safety is the primary design constraint, not the final check. The energy transition, on infrastructure of this type, hinges less on component innovation and more on the ability to integrate them into what already exists and continues to function.