World’s Largest Solar Power Plants

A CleanTechnica reader recently asked how Latin America’s largest solar farm would compare with the largest solar farms in North America. That led me to updating our lists of the largest solar PV and concentrated solar power (CSP) plants on our Solar Power page. I have to say, despite covering news from this industry every day, I was surprised to see how many more solar power plants above 100 megawatts (MW) in capacity have jumped onto these lists since I last updated them. I’ll have to be sure to update these lists more regularly. As we’ve discussed many times before, solar PV and CSP are very different. I’ve actually heard one CSP insider say CSP plants are more similar to nuclear power plants than solar PV power plants. That’s probably the key reason I keep these lists separate. Before reposting the Solar Love article in which I just published these largest solar power plants, I’ll point out that all 22 solar PV power plants over 100 MW in size were completed in 2011 or later—just within the past 3 years! And then there’s also all the rooftop solar and smaller solar PV power plants that have gone up. In other words, solar PV is growing fast. And costs continue to drop. It’s even hard for those of us in the industry to keep up!

Largest Solar Power Plants In The World (CSP & Solar PV)

Below are two lists—the largest solar PV power plants in the world and the largest concentrated solar power plants in the world. I go down to solar power plants 100 MW in capacity in both instances. Things are changing fast in these solar industries, with large plants going up on a monthly basis. I’ll do my best to keep these lists up to date (so that you can bookmark this page and reference it later). Luckily, I cover these industries every day for a living, so hopefully I can do that. Without further ado, here are the largest solar power plants in the world:

Largest Solar Photovoltaic (PV) Power Plants in the World

1. “Gujarat Solar Park” in India — 600 MW (completed in 2012, includes a few somewhat separate solar parks)
2. “Topaz Solar Farm” in USA — 550 MW (300 MW completed up through January 2014)
3. “Agua Caliente” in USA — 251 MW (397 MW when complete)
4. “California Valley Solar Ranch” in USA — 250 MW (completed in 2013)
5. “Antelope Valley Solar Ranch” in USA — 230 MW (almost complete)
6. “Charanka Solar Park” in China — 221 MW (completed in 2012, part of the Gujarat Solar Park)
7. “Golmud Solar Park” in China — 200 MW (completed in 2011)
8. “Imperial Solar Energy Center South” in USA — 200 MW (completed in 2013)
9. “Centinela Solar Energy Project” in USA — 170 MW (almost complete)
10. “Meuro Solar Park” in Germany — 166 MW (completed in 2012)
11. “Mesquite Solar I” in USA — 150 MW (completed in 2012)
12. “Copper Mountain Solar Facility” in USA — 150 MW (completed in 2013)
13. “Neuhardenberg Airport Solar Park” in Germany — 145 MW (completed in 2013)
14. “Catalina Solar Project” in USA — 143 MW (completed in 2013)
15. “Campo Verde Solar Project” in USA — 139 MW (completed in 2012)
16. “Templin Solar Park” in Germany — 128 MW (completed in 2012)
17. “Arlington Valley Solar II” in USA — 127 MW (completed in 2013)
18. “Centrale solaire de Toul-Rosières” in France — 115 MW (completed in 2012)
19. “Perovo Solar Park” in Ukraine — 106 MW (completed in 2011)
20. “Xitieshan Solar Park” in China — 100 MW (completed in 2011)
21. “Gansu Jiayuguan Solar Park” in China — 100 MW (completed in 2013)
22. “Ningxia Qingyang Solar Park” in China — 100 MW (completed in 2013)
23. “Sarnia Photovoltaic Power Plant” in Canada — 97 MW (completed in 2010)

Largest Solar Thermal Power Plants in Operation

1. “Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System” in the Mojave Desert of California, USA — 392 MW
2. “Solar Energy Generating Systems” in California, USA — 354 MW
3. “Solana Generating Station” in Arizona, USA — 280 MW
4. “Solaben Solar Power Station” in Logrosán, Spain — 200 MW
5. “Solnova Solar Power Station” in Seville, Spain — 150 MW
6. “Andasol Solar Power Station” in Granada, Spain — 150 MW
7. “Extresol Solar Power Station” in Torre de Miguel Sesmero, Spain — 150 MW
8. “Shams 1” in Abu Dhabi, UAE — 100 MW (largest single-unit solar power plant in world)
9. “Palma del Río Solar Power Station” in Córdoba, Spain — 100 MW
10. “Manchasol Solar Power Station” in Ciudad Real, Spain — 100 MW
11. “Valle Solar Power Station” in San José del Valle, Spain — 100 MW
12. “Helioenergy Solar Power Station” in Écija, Spain — 100 MW
13. “Aste Solar Power Station” in Alcázar de San Juan, Spain — 100 MW
14. “Solacor Solar Power Station” in El Carpio, Spain — 100 MW
15. “Helios Solar Power Station” in Puerto Lápice, Spain — 100 MW
16. “Termosol Solar Power Station” in Navalvillar de Pela, Spain — 100 MW

For other solar records, be sure to check out our Solar Energy Facts & Solar Power Facts page. http://cleantechnica.com/2014/03/02/worlds-largest-solar-power-plants/