312th largest plant in Minnesota · 8991st nationally
St. Paul Intl Airport Red & Blue Parking is a solar power plant in Minnesota with a nameplate capacity of 3.2 MW. It generates roughly 2.9k MWh per year — enough to power about 278 average U.S. homes.
Its capacity factor of 10% reflects intermittent or peaking operation.
| Plant Name | St. Paul Intl Airport Red & Blue Parking |
|---|---|
| Operator | Metropolitan Airports Commission |
| City | St. Paul |
| County | Hennepin County |
| State | Minnesota |
| ZIP | 55111 |
| Coordinates | 44.88000, -93.21000 |
This plant highlighted in navy-ringed pin; other generators within 25 miles shown as fuel-colored dots.
| ID | Technology | Fuel | Capacity | Status | Online |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PV1 | Solar Photovoltaic | Solar | 2.3 MW | Operating | 2015 |
| PV2 | Solar Photovoltaic | Solar | 0.9 MW | Operating | 2016 |
| NERC Region | MRO |
|---|---|
| Balancing Authority | Midcontinent Independent Transmission System Operator, Inc.. |
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.