Solar Farms – largest in India and California

The world is getting “solarized” each and every day. Various solar projects big or small, large scale or residential are being taken up worldwide. The world has realised the true potential of solar power and there is a shifting paradigm towards solar. Though rooftop solar is getting enough traction worldwide, we cannot ignore the shine of the large scale solar farms/ parks that continue to shimmer under the hot sun and provide immense beauty to the otherwise barren pieces of land. Given below is a list of solar farms around the globe, exceeding the 500 MW mark. It is nice to see a lot of Ultra mega solar power projects being planned in India, since they have the potential to lower the cost of Solar power.

India has some of the largest solar farms worldwide. The government wants 20 GW of solar capacity to come through solar parks, out of the 60 GW capacity allocated for grid connected solar power plants. MNRE has plans to set up 25 solar parks, with capacity of 500 MW or above in India. Suitable land has also been identified in Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, Meghalaya, J&K, Punjab and Rajasthan.

Read Advantages of Solar Farms.

List of Solar Parks Worldwide exceeding 500 MW

1.Ultra Mega Green Solar Power Project in Sambhar Lake, Rajasthan India – A 4000 MW solar farm spanning across 23000 acres of land, is being planned to be built in the sambhar Lake district of Rajasthan, India. ~1000 MW are expected to be constructed by the end of 2016 and the entire project is expected to be completed in 7 years. This project will be set up and run by a JV between five public sector units in India.

Also read Adanis to set up INR 60,000 crore solar park in Rajasthan.

2.Rewa Solar park in Madhya Pradesh India – The upcoming 750 MW solar park in Madhya Pradesh, India developed by a JVC of SECI and MPUVNL will be the world’s largest solar park. This plant will be funded by a massive loan from World Bank. Once the project is completed by early 2017, it will be 3 times bigger than India’s solar park at Charanka, Gujarat. The power costs from this plant are set to establish new benchmarks for solar power in India, with tariff of Rs 5.5 /kWh only. The power will be sold to different states with MP getting 40% of the power.

3.The Charanka Solar Park – is the largest solar park built in Gujarat, India under the leadership of the now PM of India. It has a planned capacity of 500 MW.

Image Credit: The Guardian

 4.Topaz Solar Farm – is a ~550 MW solar farm developed by world’s leading thin film module manufacturer First Solar, in the Carrisa Plains of California. It has 9 million solar panels installed. The site for construction is suitable with abundant sunlight, existing transmission lines and away from inhabitation. Approximately 400 construction jobs were created by this project owned by BHE Renewables. Topaz Solar Farm will produce sufficient electricity to power 160,000 average California homes. A PPA has been signed with Pacific Gas & Electric.

5.Desert Sunlight Project in California – is a 550 MW solar farm, with over 8.8 million solar panels. The farm is developed by First Solar and is owned by NextEra Energy Resources, GE Energy Financial Services, and Sumitomo Corporation of America. It has the capacity to power 160 thousand homes in California and construction commenced in 2011.

6.Solar Star Projects (formerly Antelope Valley Solar Projects) – in California is a 579 MW farm developed by USA leading solar company SunPower. More than 1.7 million solar panels were used in its construction. It is owned by BHE renewables and has a PPA signed with USA’s utility company Sothern California Edison. The construction of this project had begun in early 2013 and has the capacity to power more than 255 thousand homes.

7.Mount Signal Solar (formerly known as Imperial Valley Solar 1) – Mount Signal Solar in California marks the completion of 266 MW out of a total of three phases of an ~800 MW solar project. This project used more than three million solar modules and is capable powering ~ 72,000 households. A 25-year PPA has also been signed with San Diego Gas & Electric. This project was developed by 8minutenergy Renewables, a company passionate about renewable energy in USA and completed in early 2014. We recently heard about 8minutenergy during the Indian PM’s visit to USA, where the company has agreed to develop an impressive 4GW solar project pipeline in India.

8.Noor Solar Farm in Morocco – Located on the edge of Sahara desert, the Noor Project of Morocco will have a total capacity of 580 MW and cover a total land area of 6000 acres once completed. Currently 160 MW has finished construction, capable of providing power to more than 650 thousand people there. This huge farm will form part of Morocco’s ambitious target of generating more than 40% of its total energy requirement from renewable energy sources.