80th largest plant in Minnesota · 4020th nationally
Big Blue is a wind power plant in Minnesota with a nameplate capacity of 36.0 MW. It generates roughly 74.6k MWh per year — enough to power about 7,106 average U.S. homes.
Its capacity factor of 24% reflects intermittent or peaking operation.
| Plant Name | Big Blue |
|---|---|
| Operator | Big Blue Wind Farm Llc (Mn) |
| City | Blue Earth |
| County | Faribault County |
| State | Minnesota |
| ZIP | 56013 |
| Coordinates | 43.61222, -94.19194 |
This plant highlighted in navy-ringed pin; other generators within 25 miles shown as fuel-colored dots.
| ID | Technology | Fuel | Capacity | Status | Online |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BBWP | Onshore Wind Turbine | Wind | 36.0 MW | Operating | 2012 |
| NERC Region | MRO |
|---|---|
| Balancing Authority | Midcontinent Independent Transmission System Operator, Inc.. |
Wind farms harvest kinetic energy from moving air using large rotor blades coupled to generators. Like solar, they produce zero emissions but vary with weather. Onshore wind capacity factors typically run 30–45%; offshore can exceed 50%.