For decades, the concept of renewable energy often conjured images of small-scale solar panels on a single roof or a handful of wind turbines on a distant ridge. In 2025, that image has been rendered obsolete. The United States is now in the midst of building clean energy infrastructure on a monumental, nation-shaping scale. These are no longer just environmental projects; they are some of the largest and most ambitious engineering feats of our time.
This guide provides a detailed look at the five most significant and groundbreaking renewable energy projects that are making headlines and transforming the American energy landscape this year. From the largest solar and storage facilities ever built to colossal wind farms and revolutionary new transmission lines, these projects are the concrete and steel foundations of the nation’s 21st-century energy economy.
Introduction
Welcome to your guide to the mega-projects that are defining the U.S. energy transition in 2025. The purpose of this article is to showcase the sheer scale and ambition of the renewable energy infrastructure currently being built across the country. The core thesis is that these massive projects—spanning solar, wind, and energy transmission—represent a new era in America’s commitment to clean energy. They are not only critical to achieving the nation’s climate goals but are also powerful engines of economic development, creating thousands of jobs and ensuring a more sustainable and resilient energy future.
1. The SunZia Wind and Transmission Project: The Superhighway of Clean Energy
Stretching across the vast landscapes of the American Southwest, the SunZia project is, by multiple measures, the largest clean energy infrastructure project in United States history. It is a monumental undertaking in two parts: a massive wind farm and a dedicated, long-distance transmission line to carry its power to major population centers.
What It Is
- The Wind Farm: Located in central New Mexico, the SunZia Wind farm will feature over 900 wind turbines.
- The Transmission Line: The SunZia Transmission line is a 550-mile (885 km) high-voltage direct current (HVDC) line that will run from the wind farm in New Mexico to a substation in Arizona, where the power can then be distributed to millions of homes in Arizona and California.
The Sheer Scale
- Power Capacity: The wind farm will have a total capacity of 3,500 megawatts (3.5 gigawatts), making it the largest wind project in the Western Hemisphere.
- Homes Powered: It will generate enough clean electricity to power over 3 million Americans.
- Total Cost: The project represents a capital investment of over $10 billion.
The 2025 Milestone
The year 2025 is the peak of construction for this massive project. Thousands of workers are on the ground in New Mexico and Arizona, clearing the path for the transmission line and beginning the installation of the hundreds of turbine foundations. The project is on track for its planned completion and full operational status in 2026.
Why It’s a Landmark Project
The SunZia project solves the fundamental challenge of renewables: the best wind and solar resources are often located in remote, unpopulated areas, far from the cities that need the power. By building a dedicated “superhighway” for clean energy, SunZia creates a new model for how to unlock the immense renewable potential of America’s heartland and deliver it to the coasts.
2. The Edwards & Sanborn Solar + Storage Project: The World’s Largest Solar Battery
Located in the Mojave Desert of Kern County, California, the Edwards & Sanborn project is a groundbreaking achievement in the integration of solar power and energy storage. It has set a new global standard for what is possible in grid-scale renewable energy.
What It Is
This project combines a massive solar farm with the largest battery energy storage system (BESS) in the world, all located on a single site.
The Sheer Scale
- Solar Capacity: The project includes over 875 megawatts (MW) of solar generation from nearly 2 million solar panels.
- Battery Storage: The truly record-breaking component is its battery system, which has a capacity of over 3,200 megawatt-hours (3.2 gigawatt-hours). This is enough stored energy to power hundreds of thousands of homes through the evening hours after the sun has set.
The 2025 Milestone
After years of construction, the Edwards & Sanborn project reached full operational status in early 2025, making it the officially recognized largest solar-plus-storage facility on the planet.
Why It’s a Landmark Project
This project provides a definitive answer to the age-old criticism of solar power: “What happens when the sun isn’t shining?” By co-locating a massive battery system with the solar farm, it can store the abundant solar energy generated during the day and then dispatch it to the grid during the evening and nighttime hours when demand is high. It proves that solar power can be a reliable, 24/7 source of electricity, a critical step in the transition away from fossil fuel power plants.
3. The South Fork Wind Farm: A New Era for U.S. Offshore Wind
Located 35 miles off the coast of Montauk, New York, the South Fork Wind farm is a historic achievement for the American renewable energy industry.
What It Is
South Fork Wind is New York’s first-ever offshore wind farm and one of the first utility-scale offshore wind projects to be completed in the entire United States.
The Sheer Scale
- Power Capacity: The project consists of 12 massive offshore wind turbines that generate 132 megawatts of electricity.
- Homes Powered: It produces enough clean energy to power approximately 70,000 homes on the eastern end of Long Island.
The 2025 Milestone
After successfully completing construction and its testing phase, the South Fork Wind farm became fully operational and entered commercial service in early 2025, officially marking the birth of the offshore wind industry in New York.
Why It’s a Landmark Project
While the project itself is modest in size compared to the massive offshore wind farms in Europe, its significance is enormous. The successful construction and operation of South Fork Wind serves as a crucial proof of concept for the burgeoning U.S. offshore wind industry. It has paved the way for a pipeline of much larger and more powerful offshore wind projects that are now under development up and down the East Coast, which are essential for helping densely populated coastal states meet their ambitious clean energy goals.
4. The Gemini Solar Project: A Nevada Giant
Located in the desert outside of Las Vegas, Nevada, the Gemini Solar Project is another monumental achievement in the world of solar power and energy storage, rivaling the scale of the Edwards & Sanborn project.
What It Is
The Gemini project is a massive solar photovoltaic (PV) power plant combined with a colossal battery energy storage system.
The Sheer Scale
- Solar Capacity: The project has a solar generating capacity of 690 megawatts.
- Battery Storage: It is paired with a battery system capable of storing over 1,400 megawatt-hours of energy.
- Homes Powered: It will generate enough clean energy to power more than 400,000 homes during peak demand periods.
- Total Cost: The project is a $1.2 billion investment.
The 2025 Milestone
The Gemini Solar Project officially reached full commercial operation in the first half of 2025, adding a massive amount of clean, dispatchable power to Nevada’s energy grid.
Why It’s a Landmark Project
Much like Edwards & Sanborn, the Gemini project underscores the new reality that large-scale battery storage is no longer a future technology; it is a present-day, economically viable solution. The project’s success in one of the sunniest places on Earth further solidifies the role of solar-plus-storage as a direct and powerful replacement for traditional gas-fired “peaker” plants, which are expensive and polluting power plants that are only turned on during times of high energy demand.
5. The Champlain Hudson Power Express (CHPE): An Invisible Clean Energy Superhighway
This project is a different kind of renewable energy feat—not one of generation, but of transmission. The CHPE is a revolutionary project designed to deliver clean, renewable hydropower to one of the largest cities in the world.
What It Is
The CHPE is a 339-mile (545 km) high-voltage direct current (HVDC) power line that will run from the U.S.-Canada border down to New York City. The entire line will be buried, either underground or underwater.
The Sheer Scale
- Power Capacity: The line will be able to deliver 1,250 megawatts of clean, renewable hydropower, sourced from Hydro-Québec in Canada.
- Energy Delivered: It will supply enough energy to power more than 1 million homes in New York City.
- Impact: It is projected to reduce New York City’s carbon emissions by millions of metric tons per year.
The 2025 Milestone
The year 2025 is a period of peak construction for this massive infrastructure project. Crews are actively working along the entire route, burying the cable and preparing the converter stations for its planned full operational start in 2026.
Why It’s a Landmark Project
The CHPE is a brilliant solution to the immense challenge of powering a dense, land-constrained urban center like New York City with renewable energy. By burying the entire line, the project avoids the visual and environmental impacts of traditional overhead transmission towers. It is a model for how to build the long-distance transmission infrastructure that is essential for moving clean energy from the rural areas where it is generated to the urban centers where it is most needed.
America’s Top Renewable Projects (2025)
| Project Name | Location | Primary Technology | Capacity / Size | Key Significance |
| 1. SunZia Wind & Transmission | NM to AZ | Onshore Wind & HVDC Transmission | 3,500 MW Wind & 550-Mile Line | The largest clean energy infrastructure project in U.S. history. |
| 2. Edwards & Sanborn | California | Solar + Battery Storage | 875 MW Solar & 3,200 MWh Storage | The world’s largest operational solar-plus-storage facility. |
| 3. South Fork Wind | New York | Offshore Wind | 132 MW | A landmark project proving the viability of the U.S. offshore wind industry. |
| 4. Gemini Solar | Nevada | Solar + Battery Storage | 690 MW Solar & 1,400 MWh Storage | A monumental project that helps replace fossil fuel “peaker” plants. |
| 5. Champlain Hudson Power Express | Canada to NYC | Underground & Underwater Transmission | 1,250 MW Capacity & 339-Mile Line | An innovative model for delivering clean energy to dense urban centers. |
Conclusion
The five projects highlighted in this guide are more than just power plants; they are powerful symbols of America’s accelerating energy transition. They demonstrate that in 2025, the U.S. is not just talking about clean energy but is building it at a monumental and world-leading scale. From the vast deserts of the Southwest to the windy shores of the Atlantic, these feats of engineering are the concrete and steel foundations of a 21st-century American energy economy that is more sustainable, more resilient, and more innovative than ever before.