The solar park and farm industry in the USA has expanded significantly over the past decade, driven by advancements in solar technology, decreasing costs, and increased demand for renewable energy. Large-scale solar farms (also known as utility-scale solar projects) are still being built, but the industry is also seeing a growing trend toward installing solar panels on buildings, parking lots, and other structures in urban environments.
Many of the largest solar farms in the U.S. continue to be built in areas with vast open land, primarily in the Southwest, due to high levels of sunlight and relatively inexpensive land. These large solar farms provide energy directly to the grid and can power cities, homes, and industrial facilities.
Some of the largest solar farms in the U.S. include:
These solar farms primarily generate electricity that can power hundreds of thousands of homes. For example, a 500 MW solar farm could power approximately 100,000 homes, depending on various factors like weather conditions and local energy demands.
Solar farms produce electricity through photovoltaic (PV) cells or concentrated solar power (CSP) systems. The energy produced can range from several megawatts (MW) to gigawatts (GW). Newer projects are increasingly integrating battery storage to provide a steady flow of electricity even when sunlight is not available, helping to improve grid reliability.
Large corporations like Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, and Google have increasingly invested in solar farms to power their data centers and operations. These tech giants are often building or purchasing energy from large-scale solar projects to meet their renewable energy goals. However, many solar farms still serve the general power grid and supply electricity to cities and residential customers.
Several new large-scale solar projects are underway in the U.S.:
These new farms are part of a broader push to reduce carbon emissions and increase the share of renewables in the U.S. energy grid.
There is growing interest in urban solar installations, such as rooftop solar on large buildings, parking lots, and schools, especially in areas where land for large farms is scarce or expensive. These distributed solar installations provide several benefits:
In contrast, urban solar installations avoid many of these issues by making use of existing infrastructure but come with limitations in terms of scale and efficiency.
There is no single approach that dominates the solar industry today. Utility-scale solar farms will continue to play a significant role in decarbonizing the energy grid, especially in sunny, rural areas. However, there is also a growing shift toward distributed solar systems in urban areas, which provide resilience and sustainability at a local level.
Both large land-based solar farms and urban solar projects are likely to grow in parallel, meeting different energy needs while contributing to the transition to renewable energy.
Desert Sunlight 300 Station, 313.7 MW, California
Solana Generating Station, 295.4 MW, Arizona
Copper Mountain Solar 3 Station, 255 MW, Nevada
California Valley Solar Ranch, 249.8 MW, California
Desert Sunlight 250 Station, 249.7 MW, California
Imperial Valley Solar Station, 199.9 MW, California
Copper Mountain Solar 2 Station, 154 MW, Nevada
Solar Gen 2 Station, 150 MW, California
Ivanpah 2 Station, 133.4 MW, California
Ivanpah 3 Station, 133.4 MW, California
Ivanpah 1 Station, 133 MW, California
Imperial Solar Energy Center South Station, 130 MW, California
SEGS VIII Station, 88 MW, California
SEGS IX Station, 88 MW, California
Red Horse 2 Station, 81 MW, Arizona
Nevada Solar One Station, 68.5 MW, Nevada
Regulus Solar Project, 60 MW, California
Silver State Solar Power North Station, 50 MW, Nevada
Alpaugh 50 Station, 50 MW, California
CM48 Station, 48 MW, Nevada
OCI Alamo Solar I Station, 40.7 MW, Texas
SEGS III Station, 36 MW, California
SEGS IV Station, 36 MW, California
SEGS V Station, 36 MW, California
SEGS VI Station, 36 MW, California
SEGS VII Station, 36 MW, California
Foothills Solar Plant, 35 MW, Arizona
Long Island Solar Farm, 31.5 MW, New York
SEGS II Station, 30 MW, California
Simon Solar Farm, 30 MW, Georgia
Avalon Solar Station, 29 MW, Arizona
NRG Solar Borrego I Station, 26 MW, California
DeSoto Next Generation Solar Energy Station, 25 MW, Florida
Avra Valley Solar Station, 25 MW, Arizona
Hyder Solar Station, 22 MW, Arizona
NRG Solar Blythe Station, 21 MW, California
Atwell Island Station, 20.2 MW, California
TA-Acacia Station, 20 MW, California
Stroud Solar Station, 20 MW, California
Dogwood Solar Station, 20 MW, North Carolina
Cantua Solar Station, 20 MW, California
Guernsey Solar Station, 20 MW, California
Huron Solar Station, 20 MW, California
Gates Solar Station, 20 MW, California
Mountain View Solar Station, 20 MW, Nevada
Grand Ridge Solar Farm, 20 MW, Illinois
Pasquotank Station, 20 MW, North Carolina
Apple Data Center PV Station, 20 MW, North Carolina
Alpaugh North Station, 20 MW, California
FRV Cygnus Solar Project, 20 MW, California
Vega Solar Station, 20 MW, California
Lone Valley Solar Park II, 20 MW, California
White River Solar Station, 20 MW, California
Sol Orchard El Centro PV Station, 20 MW, California
Corcoran Solar Station, 20 MW, California
Halifax Station, 20 MW, North Carolina
Western Antelope Blue Sky Ranch A, 20 MW, California
Data source - Solar Energy Information Administration - EIA