When people think about solar energy, they often think of rooftop solar panels on a house. However, the residential solar energy market is only a small segment of the total installed solar capacity. According to the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), there are over 37,000 megawatts of utility scale solar power projects in operation in the United States, with an additional 112,000 megawatts under development.
In fact, utility scale solar is the largest segment in terms of installed solar energy capacity, followed by commercial solar, then residential solar. Finally, off-grid solar is just a tiny sliver of the total market. The significant players in utility scale solar include China, the United States, Europe, India, Brazil, and Japan.
What Are Utility Scale Solar Power Projects?
Utility solar design enables projects to generate a large amount of electricity, typically feeding into the utility grid. These utility solar projects are characterized by their significant capacity, often measured in megawatts (MW) or even gigawatts (GW), and require a substantial amount of land to install solar panels.
Increasingly, utility scale solar power plants are paired with battery energy storage systems (BESS) because renewable energy is an intermittent power source. Solar battery banks help utility companies meet peak energy demand with clean energy, which often occurs on summer evenings.
Key features of utility scale solar projects include:
Scale and Solar Capacity: Utility scale solar is designed to generate electricity on a large scale, capable of supplying power to thousands of homes or businesses.
Grid Integration: These utility scale projects are typically connected to the electrical grid, enabling the power generated to be distributed and used by consumers efficiently.
Land Requirements: Utility scale solar power requires a significant amount of land to accommodate the installation of solar panels. The specific land requirements can vary depending on the technology used and the project's capacity, but generally, it ranges from 5 to 10 acres per megawatt of electricity generated.
Lower Cost Solar Electricity: Due to their large size, utility scale solar projects often benefit from economies of scale, making them cost-effective compared to smaller solar installations.
Solar Technology and Components: Utility scale solar power farms utilize various technologies and components, including solar panels, inverters, tracking systems, and transformers, to convert sunlight into electrical energy.
Solar Permitting: These projects often require specific permits, approvals, and compliance with regulations related to land use, environmental impact assessments, and grid interconnection.
GreenLancer specializes in permit-ready solar plan sets, engineering reviews, and interconnection applications. Create an account to begin shopping for utility solar design and engineering services.
Market Trends in Utility Scale Solar
According to the US Energy Information Administration (EIA), the growth of utility scale solar continues to accelerate in the United States. In 2024, a record 36.4 GW of utility scale solar installations are expected to be added to the grid, nearly doubling the previous year's record of 18.4 GW. As a result, solar and battery storage are projected to make up 81% of new US electric capacity additions for 2024.
In fact, solar has contributed more than 40% of all new capacity in the past two years, over 30% in six of the last seven years, and over 20% in each of the last ten years in the United States. Utility scale and distributed solar energy accounts for a combined 49% of all capacity additions to US grids in 2022, surpassing wind power's 22% contribution.
In recent years, some communities have started banning solar farms over concerns about land use, aesthetics, and wildlife habitat. Some developers have started incorporating sustainability practices into utility solar design to help address these concerns, including sheep grazing to minimize mowing, vegetation buffers, and wildlife-friendly fencing.
Types Of Utility Scale Solar Projects
There are two primary solar power technologies in use at utility scale solar plants.
Photovoltaic (PV) Solar Farms
These solar modules use sunlight to generate a current of electricity and are the same technology commonly used for residential and commercial solar PV systems. The solar cells contain a semiconductor material, typically silicon, and produce direct current (DC) voltage. Then, an inverter converts the power to alternating current (AC).
The greater the intensity of the sunlight, the greater the flow of electricity. The PV panels on the market today are commonly between 16% and 23% efficient; solar panel efficiency has increased significantly over the last couple of decades.
Concentrated Solar Power Plants
This technology uses mirrors to concentrate the sun's heat to drive steam turbines or engines, producing electricity. In addition, plant operators can store the thermal energy generated from concentrated solar power (CSP) plants to generate electricity later. There are several types of CSP technology in use in the United States, including parabolic trough, compact linear Fresnel reflector, power tower, and dish-engine.
Benefits of Utility Scale Solar
Here are the advantages of grid scale solar energy.
Cost-effective solar power: Utility scale solar projects have low operational and maintenance costs, making them financially attractive in the long run.
Job creation and economic growth: These solar projects create employment opportunities, drive innovation, and contribute to strengthening the economy.
Energy storage integration: These solar farms can be paired with battery energy storage systems to provide backup power, manage energy ramps, and enhance grid stability.
Scalability: Utility scale solar power projects can be easily scaled up to meet growing energy demand without significant additional infrastructure.
Sustainability: Solar energy is a clean and renewable energy source, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and dependence on fossil fuels.
Grid stability and reliability: Utility scale solar power plants can contribute to grid stability, especially when combined with energy storage or other grid management techniques.
Utility Scale Solar Projects Are Critical
As concern about greenhouse gas emissions and climate change continues to rise, utility scale PV plants provide a solution. As the installed capacity of solar photovoltaics increases, the demand for fossil fuel power plants decreases. In addition, battery storage systems at solar plants enable solar power to meet peak energy demand, even when the sun isn’t shining.
Utility scale solar comes with its own permit and engineering nuances and challenges – GreenLancer has a network of solar designers and utility scale solar engineers who specialize in AHJs across the country to navigate the process with simplicity.
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