35th largest plant in California · 637th nationally
Topaz Solar Farm is a solar power plant in California with a nameplate capacity of 586 MW. It generates roughly 1.0M MWh per year — enough to power about 98,740 average U.S. homes.
Its capacity factor of 20% reflects intermittent or peaking operation.
| Plant Name | Topaz Solar Farm |
|---|---|
| Operator | Topaz Solar Farms Llc |
| City | Santa Margarita |
| County | San Luis Obispo County |
| State | California |
| ZIP | 93453 |
| Coordinates | 35.40556, -120.06861 |
This plant highlighted in navy-ringed pin; other generators within 25 miles shown as fuel-colored dots.
| ID | Technology | Fuel | Capacity | Status | Online |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TPZ2 | Solar Photovoltaic | Solar | 151 MW | Operating | 2013 |
| TPZ1 | Solar Photovoltaic | Solar | 130 MW | Operating | 2013 |
| TPZ5 | Solar Photovoltaic | Solar | 113 MW | Operating | 2014 |
| TPZ3 | Solar Photovoltaic | Solar | 102 MW | Operating | 2014 |
| TPZ4 | Solar Photovoltaic | Solar | 90.3 MW | Operating | 2014 |
| NERC Region | WECC |
|---|---|
| Balancing Authority | California Independent System Operator |
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.