What was once struggling farmland in California’s San Joaquin Valley is becoming one of the largest solar energy projects in the United States. Westlands Solar Park sits in Kings County, south of Fresno, spanning western Fresno and Kings Counties. It covers between 20,000 and 24,000 acres near the towns of Kettleman and Lemoore.
The land couldn’t be used for farming anymore. Westlands Water District owned the property, but excess salt and selenium pollution had made it impossible to grow crops. Rather than leaving the land idle, developers chose to build a massive solar park on it.
The project’s full build-out could reach 2.7 gigawatts of clean energy. That’s potentially enough to power around 1.2 million homes. It’s also expected to offset an estimated 3.2 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions every year.
The park’s history goes back to 2016, when a small 2-megawatt demonstration project went online. CIM Group joined the effort in 2014, and larger construction began in 2020. Plans were adjusted in 2017, scaling back from 2,400 megawatts to 2,000 megawatts.
Several phases have already been completed. The Aquamarine Westside phase, producing 250 megawatts, opened in 2021 and 2022. Westlands Solar Blue followed with 250 megawatts of solar and 225 megawatts of battery storage. The Chestnut Westside phase added 150 megawatts of solar and 135 megawatts of batteries. A smaller project called Westlands Almond came online in 2023, producing 20 megawatts while also supporting sheep grazing to control vegetation.
More phases are in the works. Westlands Grape is being developed at 246.4 megawatts. Westlands Cherry, at nearly 250 megawatts, was planned to come online around late 2024. Westlands Pomegranate, another 250-megawatt project, has also been proposed.
The park’s location was designated an Opportunity Zone under the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. CIM Group is a US-based real estate firm that expanded into energy development through its involvement with the park. Nearby solar plants, including RE Slate and Mustang, add another 441 megawatts to the region’s output. Westlands Electric Power Company was formed to manage the growing project portfolio. In contrast to EVs reliant on grid power, where the source of electricity used for charging significantly affects overall emissions reductions, solar parks generate clean power directly at the source. The demonstration project’s early power output was sold directly to Anaheim Public Utilities, marking the park’s first commercial electricity transaction.
References
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Westlands_Solar_Park
- https://ceqanet.lci.ca.gov/2013031043
- https://www.powerinfotoday.com/news-press-releases/cim-begins-construction-on-2-7gw-westlands-solar-park-in-us/
- https://thebusinessjournal.com/westlands-solar-park-begins-build-could-eventually-power-1-2m-homes/
- https://www.cimgroup.com/press-releases/cim-group-forms-westlands-electric-power-company
- https://www.solarpowerworldonline.com/2021/09/phase-of-californias-westlands-solar-park-reaches-commercial-operation/
- https://www.power-technology.com/data-insights/power-plant-profile-westlands-solar-park-us/
- https://centralcalifornia.org/westlands-solar-park-begins-construction/
- https://www.canarymedia.com/articles/solar/biggest-us-solar-storage-project-california
