In early October, in the countryside around Favara, in the province of Agrigento, a gang cut through the fence of a solar plant and made off with around ten kilometres of solar cable. According to the local press, the cameras had been tampered with before the raid, and the damage runs into tens of thousands of euros. In the same days, in Acate, near Ragusa, two similar attempts failed only because security guards arrived in time. This is not news from some faraway place: copper theft at solar sites in Basilicata follows the same logic, because our inland areas offer thieves exactly what they are looking for. Isolated sites, darkness that falls early in autumn, and materials that are easy to sell on. And with new agrivoltaic projects approved in the Matera area, the number of open construction sites across the region is set to grow. What’s more, the damage doesn’t stop at the value of the cable. There are days of downtime, penalties for late delivery, the insurance excess and the client’s trust to rebuild.
Copper theft at solar sites in Basilicata: why a camera alone is not enough
The Sicilian case teaches us one clear lesson: a system that only records can be blinded in a matter of minutes. What makes the difference is the time between the intrusion and the response. That is why our WOLF ONE system pairs a thermal camera, which picks out figures even in total darkness, with a 4K colour camera. We then link everything through an encrypted channel to our 24/7 Control Room. Artificial intelligence filters out false alarms, such as a wild boar or a branch moving in the wind. So when an alarm is real, the operator checks the footage and dispatches a response straight away. The towers are self-powered by solar panels and work even where there is no mains electricity yet, which is exactly where sites are most exposed to copper theft at solar sites in Basilicata. From the app on your smartphone, you can arm or disarm the system, watch live footage and set coverage hours. The built-in sensors also detect the early signs of a fire before it spreads through the stubble and the modules.
Eighty years in the area, one single point of contact
Behind the technology are people who know every corner of the countryside. Our Consortium brings together Vigilanza Lupo Lucano, founded in 1942 as a rural security service in Ferrandina, and Balsano Impianti, specialists in technology installations. The people who design the system and the people who respond on site work side by side. We can also supply generators and 4G/5G, satellite or radio-link connectivity, so your site has a single point of contact for power, network and protection. If you are starting up a plant or are worried about copper theft at solar sites in Basilicata, don’t wait for the first police report. Email us at info@cwss.it or call us on 327.047.4861: we will assess your site together and prepare a free quote, with a surveillance plan tailored to the size and layout of your site.
