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Where are the World’s Largest Solar Power Plants?

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World's 15 largest solar power plants

Visualizing the World’s Largest Solar Power Plants

Devastating wildfires, rising temperatures, and warming seas across the world have added renewed vigor to the global quest for carbon emission reductions.

And in this hunt for sustainable alternatives to air-polluting energy sources, solar power plants have emerged as shining beacons of hope.

In this graphic, Pranav Gavali uses data from Statista to shed light on the world’s 15 largest solar power plants (and solar parks) illuminating the world as of 2021.

World’s Largest Solar Power Plants By Capacity

Solar power plants have been harnessing the sun’s abundant rays over the past two decades, but plants with capacities in the thousands of megawatts have only come online within the last few years.

And two countries have been leading their rollout: China and India. Together they housed nine of the 15 largest solar power plants in the world in 2021.

Here are the top 15 solar power plants (photovoltaic power stations) by installed capacity:

Rank NameCountryCapacity
1Bhadla Solar Park🇮🇳 India2,245 MW
2Huanghe Hydropower Hainan Solar Park🇨🇳 China2,200 MW
3Pavagada Solar Park🇮🇳 India2,050 MW
4Benban Solar Park🇪🇬 Egypt1,650 MW
5Tengger Desert Solar Park🇨🇳 China1,547 MW
6Noor Abu Dhabi🇦🇪 UAE1,177 MW
7Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park🇦🇪 UAE1,013 MW
8Kurnool Ultra Mega Solar Park🇮🇳 India1,000 MW
9Datong Solar Power Top Runner Base🇨🇳 China1,000 MW
10NP Kunta🇮🇳 India978 MW
11Longyangxia Dam Solar Park🇨🇳 China850 MW
12Villanueva Solar Park🇲🇽 Mexico828 MW
13Copper Mountain Solar Facility🇺🇸 United States802 MW
14Mount Signal Solar Park🇺🇸 United States794 MW
15Rewa Ultra Mega Solar Park🇮🇳 India750 MW

India’s Bhadla Solar Park is the world’s largest solar park as of the time of the dataset. It has the capacity to generate 2,245 megawatts of electricity alone, enough to power 1.3 million homes. The country also has the third-largest solar power plant, Pavagada Solar Park, and five of the top 15.

China is the world’s largest producer of solar energy and had four of the 15 largest solar plants in 2021. Huanghe Hydropower’s Hainan Solar Park—listed in some sources as Golmud Solar Park—is the world’s second largest solar power plant with a 2,200 megawatt capacity, while Tengger Desert Solar Park (also known as the “Great Wall of Solar”) was formerly the largest solar park in the world with a 1,547 megawatt capacity.

One thing the world’s largest solar power plants have in common is access to large stretches of open land, particularly deserts. And three of the newest mega solar parks are in the Middle East: Egypt’s Benban Solar Park, and UAE’s Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park and Noor Abu Dhabi Solar Power Plant.

Solar energy usage has been growing exponentially across the Atlantic as well, just not as fast as in Asia. Mexico’s Villanueva Solar Park is the largest solar plant in the Americas with an 828 megawatt capacity, while the Copper Mountain Solar Facility (802 MW) in Nevada and the Mount Signal Solar Park (794 MW) in California are the largest plants in the United States.

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This article was published as a part of Visual Capitalist's Creator Program, which features data-driven visuals from some of our favorite Creators around the world.

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Technology

Ranked: Google’s Thirstiest Data Centers

Locating and ranking the thirstiest of Google’s data centers in America, by the millions of gallons of water consumed in 2023.

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This map locates Google's data centers that consume the most water annually.

How Much Water do Google’s Data Centers Use?

This was originally posted on our Voronoi app. Download the app for free on iOS or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.

This map locates Google’s data centers that consume the most water in America. Data is sourced from Google’s 2024 Environment Report.

Why do data centers need water? It’s because computer servers generate significant heat that must be dissipated to maintain performance.

As a result, water is used in chiller plants, evaporative cooling systems, and humidification to manage temperature levels.

Ranked: Google’s Thirstiest Data Centers

Google’s data center in Council Bluffs, Iowa consumed nearly 1 billion gallons of water in 2023, by far the most by any single complex listed in their report.

All of that water was potable, i.e., safe for drinking.

RankLocationStateWater Used 2023 (Gallons)
1Council BluffsIA980M
2Mayes CountyOK815M
3Berkeley CountySC763M
4Douglas CountyGA346M
5LenoirNC337M
6The DallesOR302M
7Montgomery CountyTN289M
8LeesburgVA173M
9HendersonNV159M
10Jackson CountyAL142M
11MidlothianTX136M
12PapillionNE135M
13New AlbanyOH127M
14SterlingVA56M
15AshburnVA55M
16LockbourneOH23M
17LancasterOH8M
18Storey CountyNV0.2M

The data center complexes in Mayes County, Oklahoma and Berkeley County, South Carolina are the next “thirstiest,” using 750–800 million gallons of water a year.

These top three locations are well-above their counterparts across the U.S., and the rest of the world in water usage.

ℹ️ Fun fact: the U.S. has nearly half of the world’s 12,000 data centers. Germany and the UK are distant runners-up.

Together all of Google’s data centers used nearly more than 6 billion gallons of water in 2023, the equivalent of 41 golf courses.

Do Google’s Data Centers Drink Water?

Technically, data centers don’t actually “consume” all the water they use. Most of it is circulated in a closed-loop cooling system, with some loss.

However these numbers are from Google’s Sustainability Report, which specifies the water it’s withdrawn from the supply, discharged, and “consumed,” with the latter visualized here.

Also in drier areas, water is actively used to control humidity by evaporation which means it is being lost to the surroundings.

Finally, heated water returned to the ecosystem can have an adverse environmental impact.

Learn More on the Voronoi App

The other thing data centers need a lot of: electricity. Check out Data Center Electricity Consumption by State for a breakdown.

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