Italy agreed Thursday to a Vatican plan to turn a 430-hectare (1,000-acre) field north of Rome, once the source of controversy between the two, into a vast solar farm that will generate enough electricity to meet the needs of Vatican City and turn it into the world’s first carbon-neutral state.
The Vatican foreign minister, Archbishop Paul Gallagher, signed the agreement with Italy’s ambassador to the Holy See, Francesco Di Nitto. The Italian parliament must approve the arrangement, since the territory enjoys extraterritorial status that must be extended.
