This article has been Updated on 11/4/19

*As of June 2017 China and India have taken over as the leading developers of large scale solar projects.

U.S. demand for solar power is surging despite an economic recession, thanks to government financial incentives, some easing in credit availability, and increasing public recognition of its environmental benefits. Although the largest utility scale plants are outside the United States, 2 Plants currently in construction in California and New Mexico will balance the European dominance in large scale solar utility projects.

Honorable Mention – Kamuthi Solar Power Project – 648MW – India

The facility in Kamuthi, Tamil Nadu, has a capacity of 648 megawatts and covers an area of 10 kilometres squares. This makes it the largest solar power plant at a single location, taking the title from the Topaz Solar Farm in California, which has a capacity of 550 MW.

http://www.businessinsider.com/india-has-built-the-worlds-largest-solar-power-plant-2016-11

Honorable Mention – Longyangxia Dam Solar Park – 850MW – China

The Longyangxia Dam Solar Park is China’s latest in a long line of large-scale solar energy projects. A solar farm in the city of Cixi in eastern Zhejiang province made the news recently for installing 300 hectares of solar panels above a fish farm. The farm is expected to generate 220-gigawatt hours of electricity a year – enough power for 100,000 households – according to the state-run Xinhua news agency.

https://visibleearth.nasa.gov/view.php?id=89668

5a. Kurnool Ultra Mega Solar Park – 1000 MW – India

With 900 MW of the 1,000 MW already commissioned at the Kurnool Ultra Solar Park, and the remaining to be fully operational next month, it has already become the largest such park outpacing 648 MWsolar park developed by Adani in Tamil Nadu and Topaz Solar Park of 550 MW in California.

http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-andhrapradesh/with-kurnool-solar-park-state-takes-a-giant-leap/article18289685.ece

5b. Datong Solar Power Top Runner Base – 1000MW – China

With 1GW Phase I completed and a Total capacity is 3GW in 3 phases. Datong Solar Power plant in China has the potential to be the largest solar plant in the world once completed. According to government statistics, from July 2016 to January 2017 , Datong generated a total of 870 million watts of electricity, equivalent to more than 120 million watts per month of power generation.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_photovoltaic_power_stations

4. Noor Solar Park – 1117MW – Morocco

Ouarzazate Solar Power Station (OSPS), also called Noor Power Station is a solar power complex located in the Drâa-Tafilalet region in Morocco, 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) from Ouarzazate town, in Ghessat rural council area. At 1117 MW, it is the world’s largest concentrated solar power plant. With an additional 72 MW photovoltaic system the entire project is planned to produce 1117 MW at peak when finished and is being built in three phases and in four parts. The total project is expected to cost $9 billion.

3. Pavagada Solar Park – 1400MW – India

Pavagada solar park is a 2GW solar complex being developed in Pavagada, Tumkur district, approximately 180km from Bengaluru, Karnataka, India. It is expected to become the world’s biggest solar farm when completed.

2. Tengger Desert Solar Park – 1500MW – China

The 1547MW solar power was installed in Zhongwei, Ningxia is the world’s largest solar array by far. Know as the “Great Wall of Solar” in China. The Tengger Desert is an arid natural region that covers about 36,700 km and is mostly in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region in China. The solar field itself covers 1,200 Km (3.2%) of land.

http://www.escn.com.cn/news/show-310093.html

1. Bhadla Solar Park – 2245MW – India

Spread over 4500 hactare, Bhadla solar park near Jodhpur has a capacity of 2245 MW which is set to be online in December 2019.

Previous Largest Sites as of 2009

Arnedo Solar Plant, Spain

The plant produces an impressive 34 GWh every year, which will power 12,000 households and prevent 375,000 tonnes of CO2. The facility sits on seventy hectares and houses 172,000 panels. The project’s budget was around €180,000,000. La Rioja, a Spanish region known for its wine, already covers 62% of its electricity with renewable sources.

Source: Renewable Energy Magazine

Waldpolenz Solar Park, Germany

Waldpolenz Solar Park, which is the world’s largest thin-film photovoltaic (PV) power system, is built in on military air base to the east of Leipzig in Germany. The power plant is a 40-megawatt solar power system using state-of-the-art thin film technology. current utc time . 550,000 First Solar thin-film modules are used, which supplies 40,000 MWh of electricity per year. The investment cost for the Waldpolenz solar park amounts to some Euro 130 million.

Source: Wikipedia

Moura photovoltaic power station, Portugal

The Moura photovoltaic power station is located in the municipality of Moura, in Alentejo, Portugal, which is one of the sunniest regions in Europe and also one of the most economically depressed. Its construction involves two stages, with the first one being constructed in 13 months and completed in 2008, and the other will be completed by 2010, at a total cost of €250 million for the project.

The power station will have an installed capacity of 46 MWp, counting a total of over 376,000 solar panels. Almost 190,000 panels (32 MW) are fitted on fixed structures, 52,000 (10 MW) on single-axis trackers, which follow the sun across the sky, and a further 20 MW of power capacity will be added during phase two of the project. It will occupy an area of 320 acres (130 hectares), producing 88 GWh of electrical energy per year.

Source: Wikipedia

Puertollano Photovoltaic Park, Spain

Renovalia developed this power station in Puertollano, Ciudad Real, housing an energy park with an installed capacity of 50 megawatts (MW). The power generated here is equivalent to the annual domestic consumption of electricity of about 39,000 households. The energy produced here will replace a theoretical discharge of 84,000 tons of CO2/year or, 2.1 million tons of CO2 over the 25 years during it’s production.

Source: El Economista

Olmedilla Photovoltaic Park, Spain

The Olmedilla Photovoltaic (PV) Park uses 162,000 flat solar photovoltaic panels to deliver 60 megawatts of electricity on a sunny day. The entire plant was completed in 15 months at a cost of about $530 million at current exchange rates. Olmedilla was built with conventional solar panels, which are made with silicon and tend to be heavy and expensive.

Source: Scientific American

Rancho Cielo Solar Farm, USA

The Rancho Cielo Solar Farm is the largest proposed solar farm in the United States. It is located in an industrial community in Belen, New Mexico named Rancho Cielo, and is expected to provide the majority of the community’s power when it is completed. It’s cost expectation is $840 million and it will provide 600 MWp, and will cover an area of 700 acres (280 ha). The solar farm will be using thin film silicon panels will be built locally.

Source: Wikipedia

Topaz Solar Farm, USA

Topaz Solar Farm is a proposed 550 megawatt (MW) solar photovoltaic power plant, to be built by First Solar, Inc. (thin film silicon solar module maker) in the Carrizo Plain, northwest of California Valley at a cost of over $1 billion. On August 14, 2008, Pacific Gas and Electric announced an agreement to buy all the power from the power plant.

Source: Wikipedia