SunZia Wind Project Starts Commercial Operations, Becomes U.S.'s Largest Wind Farm

The SunZia Wind Project in New Mexico has begun commercial operations, giving the United States a new largest wind farm and adding a major source of electricity for western markets. The U.S. Energy Information Administration said June 12 that SunZia “began commercial operations this month,” marking a concrete milestone for a project built to send power beyond New Mexico through a dedicated long-distance transmission line.

According to EIA data from its Preliminary Monthly Electric Generator Survey for April 2026, SunZia has 3,650 megawatts of net summer generating capacity and 916 wind turbines. That makes it the largest wind farm in the country. EIA said it is larger than the next two biggest U.S. wind projects, Alta Wind in Southern California at 1,098 MW and Great Prairie in northern Texas at 1,027 MW. SunZia is more than triple the size of either project on its own.

The project’s significance is not just its size. SunZia is paired with SunZia Transmission, a roughly 550-mile, high-voltage direct current line rated at ±525 kilovolts and designed to move about 3,000 MW from central New Mexico to south-central Arizona. From there, the electricity can be delivered into Arizona and California markets. In a May 21 filing, the California Independent System Operator, which manages much of the high-voltage grid in California, said SunZia Transmission’s facilities were placed under CAISO operational control in April, effective April 9, and that the generation projects had recently entered commercial operation.

“The generation projects have recently entered commercial operation and the SunZia system will begin generating more than 3,000 MW for delivery into western markets,” CAISO said in the filing to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

The scale of the project is especially clear in New Mexico’s power mix. Before SunZia, the state had 3,997 MW of net summer wind capacity, according to EIA. Adding SunZia brings that total to about 7,647 MW, nearly doubling New Mexico’s installed wind capacity. EIA said that would put wind at roughly 45% of the state’s total generating capacity, a sharp increase for a single project. Pattern Energy developed the project.

EIA also said some of SunZia’s turbines were already producing electricity during testing and commissioning by April, before the commercial start this month. A segment of the transmission route in Arizona, through the San Pedro Valley, remains the subject of ongoing litigation, and the court outcome is unresolved.