133rd largest plant in Arizona · 8126th nationally
Prairie Fire is a solar power plant in Arizona with a nameplate capacity of 4.5 MW. It generates roughly 7.5k MWh per year — enough to power about 717 average U.S. homes.
Its capacity factor of 19% reflects intermittent or peaking operation.
| Plant Name | Prairie Fire |
|---|---|
| Operator | Tucson Electric Power Co |
| City | Tucson |
| County | Pima County |
| State | Arizona |
| ZIP | 85747 |
| Coordinates | 32.11639, -110.82000 |
This plant highlighted in navy-ringed pin; other generators within 25 miles shown as fuel-colored dots.
| ID | Technology | Fuel | Capacity | Status | Online |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GEN1 | Solar Photovoltaic | Solar | 4.5 MW | Operating | 2012 |
| NERC Region | WECC |
|---|---|
| Balancing Authority | Tucson Electric Power Company |
Utility-scale solar farms convert sunlight directly into electricity using photovoltaic panels. They produce zero direct emissions and have no fuel cost, but generation is variable — peaking at midday and falling to zero at night. Capacity factors typically run 18–28% in good locations.