61st largest plant in New Mexico · 4223rd nationally
Sterling I Wind Farm is a wind power plant in New Mexico with a nameplate capacity of 29.9 MW. It generates roughly 123.1k MWh per year — enough to power about 11,722 average U.S. homes.
Its capacity factor of 47% puts it in the middle range — running steadily but not full-time.
| Plant Name | Sterling I Wind Farm |
|---|---|
| Operator | Aem Wind Llc |
| City | Tatum |
| County | Lea County |
| State | New Mexico |
| ZIP | 88267 |
| Coordinates | 33.35960, -103.25058 |
This plant highlighted in navy-ringed pin; other generators within 25 miles shown as fuel-colored dots.
| ID | Technology | Fuel | Capacity | Status | Online |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| STER1 | Onshore Wind Turbine | Wind | 29.9 MW | Operating | 2017 |
| NERC Region | MRO |
|---|---|
| Balancing Authority | Southwest Power Pool |
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%.