10 Best Wind Farms in California

One of California’s primary renewable energy sources is wind energy. It contributes to about 7.8% of the state’s total energy production, making it a necessary component of California’s energy mix. Nearly 27% of California’s total energy production as of 2019 came from wind energy. Therefore, many wind farms have popped up in the last several years, increasing the state’s sustainable energy generation.

Several elements make California the best location for wind farms, including

  • The natural desert areas in California are ideal locations for installing wind turbines without disturbing the wildlife.
  • Since 2003, California stands sixth in terms of power generating capacity for minor wind energy systems 
  • An ordinance about renewable energy was passed by Los Angeles County that forbade large-scale wind turbines in standalone areas. 
  • In 2013, San Diego County implemented some rule changes for wind farms with a greater emphasis on noise reduction and elimination.

Let’s take a look at the best 10 in the State.

10 Best Wind Farms in California

NameLocationContactWebsite
Manzana Wind FarmsRosamond, CA661-256-2122avangridrenewables.com
CalWind resourcesWestlake Village, CA805-496-4347calwind.com
Vestas AWTRio Vista, CA707-374-4809us.vestas.com
San Gorgonio wind farmCoachella Valley, CAN/AN/A
Alta Wind Energy centerTehachapi pass, Kern CountyN/AN/A
Tehachapi wind farmMojave, CAN/AN/A
Scott Haggerty wind energy centerOakland, CA833-699-3223ebce.org
Ocotillo wind express farmOcotillo, CA760-358-7099patternenergy.com
Rising tree wind farmKern County661-221-8762edpr.com
Tule Wind energy projectEl Centro, CA541-618-2412tulewindeccmp.com

1. Avangrid Renewables – Manzana Wind farms

The Manzana Wind farms, located in the Rosamond region in Kern County, is a project operated and owned by Avangrid Renewables. This project has state-of-the-art wind farms that offer structured and uninterrupted energy up to 189 MW. With 126 wind turbines that can power up to 60000 homes, the Manzana wind farms supply power to three main customers, viz.,

  • San Diego Gas and Electric (SD G&E)
  • Silicon Valley Power (SVP) in Santa Clara
  • Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP)

2. CalWind Resources

In 2021, CalWind’s operations accounted for about 63990 net MWh, thanks to wind energy projects in Westlake Village and Tehachapi in California. With a 30 MW power generating capacity spurned by 300 generators that are spread across 4400 acres of land, CalWind hopes to achieve California’s clean energy targets by 2045. It is worth mentioning that CalWind is a participating member of the American Wind Energy Association.


3. Vestas AWT

Vestas AWT is considered one of the pioneers of the wind power generation industries. With more than 145 GW of wind turbines situated in around 85 countries, the sustainable energy solutions offered by Vestas have saved nearly 1.5 billion cubic tonnes of carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere. In addition, the Vestas wind systems also intend to sell the world’s largest wind turbine, with each blade measuring 115.5 meters long, with the total turbine height being a whopping 261 meters.


4. San Gorgonio Wind Farm

The San Gorgonio wind farm can be easily called one of the giant wind farms in the US. With more than 1224 windmills across a sprawling 70-square-mile area, the San Gorgonio wind farm can easily power up Palm Springs and the Coachella valley areas single-handedly. The wind turbines in this wind farm have a capacity of over 652 MW and are one of the three primary regions to generate wind energy, the other two being the Tehachapi and the Altamont passes.


5. Alta wind energy center

The Alta wind energy center, located in Tehachapi, Kern County, is the largest wind farm in the US with a total capacity of about 1550 MW. It is owned and operated by the Mojave Wind farm (also known as the Terra-Gen power). The power generated by this wind farm is traded to Southern California Edison as a part of a 25-year power purchase agreement.


6. Tehachapi Wind Farm, California

With around 4731 wind turbines, the Tehachapi wind farm can be regarded as the second largest wind farm in California. Many companies operate the turbines on the farm and collectively produce around 3236 MW of power, which is used to meet the needs of around 350000 people annually. 


7. Scott Haggerty Wind Energy center

The East Bay Community Energy (EBCE), a non-profit company that generates green energy, manages and runs this facility. Over 1.7 million consumers (both residential and commercial) are served by the nearly 57.5 MW of electricity that approximately 23 cutting-edge turbines produce per hour in Alameda County. This wind energy facility, located in the Altamont Pass region, intends to prevent bird mortality by swapping out the older turbines for new environmentally friendly ones.


8. Ocotillo wind express farm

The Ocotillo wind farm deserves praise as the first renewable transmission project to transmit electricity via the Sunrise Power transmission line from San Diego to the Imperial Valley. A total of 265 MW of electricity is produced, which annually meets the demands of 300,000 Californians. In addition, the Imperial County government and the US Bureau of Land Management jointly manage the public lands where this wind farm is located.


9. Rising tree wind farm

EDP Renewables is the owner and operator of the rising tree wind farm. This wind farm, situated in Kern County and has a capacity of about 198 MW, provides electricity to about 92000 houses throughout California. In addition to helping to reduce air pollution, this wind farm yearly conserves more than 352 million gallons of water.


10. The Tule Wind energy project

The Tule wind farm officially started operating in 2018 and is situated in the McCain Valley in eastern San Diego County. This wind farm, which has about 57 wind turbines producing electricity around-the-clock, can now supply almost 40000 San Diego houses with electricity. In addition, a 15-year power purchase deal with Southern California Edison (SCE) also involves providing renewable energy to SCE.

Sources

  • https://ww2.energy.ca.gov/almanac/renewables_data/wind/index_cms.php
  • https://www.calwea.org/fast-facts
  • https://www.mercurynews.com/2021/09/25/revamped-wind-farm-altamont-pass-provide-renewable-energy-47000-homes/
  • https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-02-10/vestas-enters-race-to-build-world-s-most-powerful-turbine