Mesquite Solar project


The Mesquite Solar project is a 512.5-megawatt photovoltaic power plant in Arlington, Maricopa County, Arizona, owned by Sempra Generation and Consolidated Edison Development Inc. The first three phases of the project were constructed using more than 2.1 million crystalline silicon solar panels made by Suntech Power. Mesquite 4 and 5 added another 112.5 MW and 70 MW of battery storage.

Project details

Construction of Phase 1 over a 3.6 km2 site adjacent the Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station began in 2011 and was completed in January 2013. It has a nameplate capacity of 150 megawatts that is contracted through a 20-year Power Purchase Agreement with Pacific Gas and Electric Company. The EPC contractor was Zachry Holdings. Phase 1 cost about $600 million, is projected to generate more than 350 gigawatt-hours of electricity annually, and will offset roughly 200,000 tons of carbon emissions each year.
Phase 2 and Phase 3 were both completed in December 2016. The panels are mounted on single-axis trackers to increase electricity production.
Mesquite 4 is a 52.5 MW solar farm with 10 MW of batteries. Mesquite 5 is a 60 MW solar farm with 60 MW of batteries. Mesquite 4 came online in January 2024 while Mesquite 5 came online in July 2023.

Electricity production

YearTotal Annual MW·h
20112,956
2012233,105
2013413,611
2014408,218
2015397,599
2016442,565
20171,145,231
20181,145,816
20191,109,029
Average 1,133,359

YearJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecTotal
20111,7111,2452,956
20126,8308,26110,84814,72920,30020,71722,78426,07025,06027,80925,00824,689233,105
201326,89731,20335,69837,96339,75139,48738,11336,26135,48938,80627,36226,581413,611
201429,46628,57039,15740,08442,76540,30437,13835,71734,45132,62727,23620,703408,218
201520,02930,90537,08940,47440,41937,68935,96236,96733,28531,13929,19924,442397,599
201623,91932,35036,41237,32142,44239,30938,86938,06933,66034,75328,32122,825408,250
201718,96823,12739,54243,04845,89651,62831,94339,42540,51337,18422,09620,363413,734
201823,59825,23432,58038,78648,92547,77442,20242,71341,10629,40625,48217,198415,004
201921,51921,21533,84340,24442,17947,75242,11345,61236,74737,82521,33816,959407,345

YearJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecTotal
201613,25513,255
201715,01616,79426,69829,17631,99232,48629,49028,68126,39223,85715,27515,040290,897
201817,20118,56924,48428,56232,73931,72929,46129,07526,01516,89115,90014,396285,023
201916,09014,28019,91621,34022,98330,94129,65629,89823,63423,72313,6159,971256,047

YearJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecTotal
201621,06021,060
201722,67325,70540,55843,98548,95249,97844,17443,44739,84635,67023,42522,187440,600
201825,67828,45038,98443,51750,60948,20344,81744,34239,83031,77727,68421,898445,789
201925,46026,61338,07043,41047,86948,93845,48345,65239,16539,10925,77220,096445,637