Top Ten Largest Solar Farms in the United States
Largest Solar Farms Ranked by Installed Capacity
Solar energy is an important source of renewable energy in the United States, with large-scale solar farms becoming more common across the country. Here, we will rank the top ten largest solar farms in the United States by installed capacity.
The Techren Solar Project is a 400 MW solar photovoltaic power plant near Boulder City, Nevada. The project is co-located with several other large solar power projects in Eldorado Valley. The project was originally founded and developed by the SECP and further developed by 174 Power Global, the U.S. subsidiary of Hanwha Group. The project consisted of two phases, both units producing a 1.5kVdc maximum system voltage standard.
The Mesquite Solar Project is a 400 MW photovoltaic power plant in Arlington, Maricopa County, Arizona. It is owned by Sempra Generation. It was constructed in 3 phases using more than 2.1 million crystalline silicon solar panels made by Suntech Power.
The Springbok Solar Farm is a 443 MW photovoltaic power station in the northwestern Mojave Desert in Kern County, California. The facility was developed and constructed by 8minuteenergy Renewables in three phases. This project was able to generate enough renewable energy to serve more than 152,000 households.
Owned by Ørsted, Permian Energy Center is a utility-scale solar plus battery storage project with an installed capacity of 460 MWAC located in Andrews County, Texas. It is located on a 3,600 acre site alongside existing oil and gas installations and is planned to supply West Texas’ growing demand for electricity. The project has 1.3 million solar panels and is anticipated to generate enough clean energy to power more than 80,000 American homes.
Located in Upton County, the Roadrunner Solar Plus Storage Project is the largest operational solar project in Texas. Construction began in February of 2019 with plans for the full project to be approximately 2,770 acres. This project is anticipated to generate 1.2 TWh annually while avoiding the emission of over 800,000 tons of CO2 per year. The battery storage capacity of this project is 57 MW.
The Desert Sunlight Solar Farm is a 550-megawatt photovoltaic power station. It’s about six miles north of Desert Center, California, in the Mojave Desert. The project uses about 8.9 million cadmium telluride modules by First Solar. The project took place in two phases, phase I having a capacity of 300 MW and Phase II having a capacity of 250 MW. A 230 MW battery storage power station was added in 2022.
Topaz Solar Farm is a 550 MW photovoltaic power station in San Luis Obispo County, California. The $2.5 billion project includes 9 million CdTe photovoltaic modules manufactured by U.S. company – First Solar. The plant’s power would be generated during the middle of the day when the demand for electricity is much higher than at night. Pacific Gas and Electric will buy the electricity produced under a 25-year power purchase agreement.
Solar Star is a Flat-panel 579 MW photovoltaic power station near Rosamond, California. It is operated and maintained by SunPower Services. In 2015, it was the world’s largest solar farm in terms of installed capacity. Compared to other photovoltaic plants, Solar Star uses a smaller number of large form-factor, high-wattage, high-efficiency, higher-cost crystalline silicon modules.
Mount Signal Solar, also known as ‘Imperial Valley Solar Project’ is a flat-panel 794 MW photovoltaic power station west of Calexico, California. The facility is being developed and constructed by 8minutenergy Renewables in three phases. At full build-out, it’s expected to be the world’s largest PV solar farm with a capacity of 800 MW. The project is also being supported by several environmental groups, as the power station was built on low-productivity farmland.
The Copper Mountain Solar Facility is a Flat-panel PV 802 MW solar photovoltaic power plant in Boulder City, Nevada. The plant was developed and is owned by Sempra Generation. Construction for the plant began in January 2010. The area of the site is 4,000 acres. It has 9 million First Solar panels and has an average capacity factor of 27.9%. Its annual net output is 1,348 GWh or 337 MWh per acre. It is co-located with the 64 MW Nevada Solar One, 150 MW Boulder Solar, and 300 MW Techren Solar. Together, they are able to form more than 1 GW of solar power. By comparison, generating capacity at Hoover Dam is about 2 GW.
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Largest Solar Farms Ranked by Installed Capacity
Solar energy is an important source of renewable energy in the United States, with large-scale solar farms becoming more common across the country. Here, we will rank the top ten largest solar farms in the United States by installed capacity.
The Techren Solar Project is a 400 MW solar photovoltaic power plant near Boulder City, Nevada. The project is co-located with several other large solar power projects in Eldorado Valley. The project was originally founded and developed by the SECP and further developed by 174 Power Global, the U.S. subsidiary of Hanwha Group. The project consisted of two phases, both units producing a 1.5kVdc maximum system voltage standard.
The Mesquite Solar Project is a 400 MW photovoltaic power plant in Arlington, Maricopa County, Arizona. It is owned by Sempra Generation. It was constructed in 3 phases using more than 2.1 million crystalline silicon solar panels made by Suntech Power.
The Springbok Solar Farm is a 443 MW photovoltaic power station in the northwestern Mojave Desert in Kern County, California. The facility was developed and constructed by 8minuteenergy Renewables in three phases. This project was able to generate enough renewable energy to serve more than 152,000 households.
Owned by Ørsted, Permian Energy Center is a utility-scale solar plus battery storage project with an installed capacity of 460 MWAC located in Andrews County, Texas. It is located on a 3,600 acre site alongside existing oil and gas installations and is planned to supply West Texas’ growing demand for electricity. The project has 1.3 million solar panels and is anticipated to generate enough clean energy to power more than 80,000 American homes.
Located in Upton County, the Roadrunner Solar Plus Storage Project is the largest operational solar project in Texas. Construction began in February of 2019 with plans for the full project to be approximately 2,770 acres. This project is anticipated to generate 1.2 TWh annually while avoiding the emission of over 800,000 tons of CO2 per year. The battery storage capacity of this project is 57 MW.
The Desert Sunlight Solar Farm is a 550-megawatt photovoltaic power station. It’s about six miles north of Desert Center, California, in the Mojave Desert. The project uses about 8.9 million cadmium telluride modules by First Solar. The project took place in two phases, phase I having a capacity of 300 MW and Phase II having a capacity of 250 MW. A 230 MW battery storage power station was added in 2022.
Topaz Solar Farm is a 550 MW photovoltaic power station in San Luis Obispo County, California. The $2.5 billion project includes 9 million CdTe photovoltaic modules manufactured by U.S. company – First Solar. The plant’s power would be generated during the middle of the day when the demand for electricity is much higher than at night. Pacific Gas and Electric will buy the electricity produced under a 25-year power purchase agreement.
Solar Star is a Flat-panel 579 MW photovoltaic power station near Rosamond, California. It is operated and maintained by SunPower Services. In 2015, it was the world’s largest solar farm in terms of installed capacity. Compared to other photovoltaic plants, Solar Star uses a smaller number of large form-factor, high-wattage, high-efficiency, higher-cost crystalline silicon modules.
Mount Signal Solar, also known as ‘Imperial Valley Solar Project’ is a flat-panel 794 MW photovoltaic power station west of Calexico, California. The facility is being developed and constructed by 8minutenergy Renewables in three phases. At full build-out, it’s expected to be the world’s largest PV solar farm with a capacity of 800 MW. The project is also being supported by several environmental groups, as the power station was built on low-productivity farmland.
1. Cooper Mountain Solar Facility
The Copper Mountain Solar Facility is a Flat-panel PV 802 MW solar photovoltaic power plant in Boulder City, Nevada. The plant was developed and is owned by Sempra Generation. Construction for the plant began in January 2010. The area of the site is 4,000 acres. It has 9 million First Solar panels and has an average capacity factor of 27.9%. Its annual net output is 1,348 GWh or 337 MWh per acre. It is co-located with the 64 MW Nevada Solar One, 150 MW Boulder Solar, and 300 MW Techren Solar. Together, they are able to form more than 1 GW of solar power. By comparison, generating capacity at Hoover Dam is about 2 GW.
