Topaz Solar Farm (2011–2014)
In California's Carrizo Plain, First Solar built Topaz, a 550-megawatt photovoltaic farm that was the world's largest when it came online in 2014. It covered about 19 square kilometers.
Topaz held the world's largest title briefly before larger projects followed.
It set the template for utility-scale solar in the US, showing that massive PV farms could be financed and built on a schedule.
Mammoth at 2.9 GW is more than five times Topaz's size, showing how far US solar scale has come in a decade.
