# Solar Star 2

CAISO Solar Photovoltaic · https://askthegrid.com/assets/facilities/solar-star-2

Solar Star 2 is a solar power facility with 279 MW of EIA-reported nameplate capacity in Kern County, California, registered as EIA Plant ID 58389. Solar Star 1 and Solar Star 2 together represented the world's largest solar project when constructed; BHE Renewables currently describes the combined installation as the fourth-largest solar farm in the United States.

## Key facts

- Technology: Solar Photovoltaic
- Power capacity: 279 MW
- Operating status: operating
- Retirement: 2025

## Grid and market context

- ISO/RTO: CAISO
- Balancing authority: CISO
- Substation: Whirlwind
- Point of interconnection: Whirlwind
- Interconnection voltage: 230 kV

## Source-backed facts

- Owner logo domain: bherenewables.com — Solar Star · confidence: medium
- Identifiers.2: {"value":"SOLAR2","system":"CAISO market resource ID"} — CAISO Resource Visibility Template · confidence: medium
- Parties.4: {"relationship":"Civil, foundations, trackers, and general site-services contractor","name":"Mortenson","official_url":"https://www.mortenson.com"} — Solar Star I & II Solar | Mortenson · confidence: high
- Parties.5: {"relationship":"Power purchaser","name":"Southern California Edison","official_url":"https://www.sce.com"} — Solar Star · confidence: medium
- Parties.5: {"relationship":"Power purchaser","name":"Southern California Edison","official_url":"https://www.sce.com"} — Solar Star Projects, Antelope Valley, California, USA · confidence: medium
- Product url: http://www.multivu.com/players/English/7706153-sunpower-oasis/ — Third-Generation SunPower® Oasis® Platform Reinvents... · confidence: medium
- Product url: http://www.multivu.com/players/English/7706153-sunpower-oasis/ — Patents | Explore Our Innovation · confidence: medium
- Construction scope: Solar Star 2 is a 270.18 MW-at-delivery-point, approximately 279 MW-nameplate solar photovoltaic facility in Kern County. Its EPC scope covered a complete photovoltaic plant, including 435 W SunPower PV modules, connected inverters, trackers, mounting structures, interconnecting and balance-of-system equipment. EIA records six generating units. The available module total is only for the co-located Solar Star 1 and 2 projects—more than 1.7 million modules—and is not assignable to Solar Star 2 alone; no exact Solar Star 2 module or inverter count is established. — Source · confidence: medium
- Product url: http://www.multivu.com/players/English/7706153-sunpower-oasis/ — Source · confidence: medium
- Product url: http://www.multivu.com/players/English/7706153-sunpower-oasis/ — Drones, Robots and Fully Integrated Design: Third-Generation SunPower® Oasis® Platform Reinvents Solar Power Plants · confidence: medium
- Significance: Solar Star 1 and Solar Star 2 together represented the world's largest solar project when constructed; BHE Renewables currently describes the combined installation as the fourth-largest solar farm in the United States. — Solar Star · confidence: medium
- Quality notes: ["Acquisition value, construction budget, bond proceeds, and operating-capacity figures in the cited transaction and rating materials generally refer to the combined Solar Star 1/2 project rather than Solar Star 2 alone; no Solar Star 2-only allocation is disclosed.","EIA reports 279 MW for Solar Star 2, while an S&P financing description reports 276 MW AC for the Solar Star 2 component within a different aggregate project-capacity presentation.","BHE Renewables separately identifies Solar Star 3 and 4 as later solar-plus-storage projects; those projects are not included in this Solar Star 2 history. The 2025 inverter replacement program is reported as operational modernization, not as a documented capacity expansion or retirement."] — Project Bonds: Solar · confidence: medium
- Commercial parties.4: {"relationship":"Civil, foundations, trackers, and site-services contractor","name":"Mortenson","detail":"Subcontracted for foundations and trackers, civil works, caisson and road construction, and general site-management services.","official_url":"https://www.mortenson.com"} — Solar Star Projects, Antelope Valley, California, USA · confidence: medium
- Commercial parties.5: {"relationship":"Power purchaser and offtaker","name":"Southern California Edison","detail":"Purchases the electricity under two long-term power-purchase agreements.","official_url":"https://www.sce.com"} — Solar Star · confidence: medium
- Commercial parties.7: {"relationship":"Project sponsor at financial close","name":"MidAmerican Energy Holdings Co.","detail":"Identified in the financing materials as project sponsor and as the provider of pledged equity support for construction funding; the company was the predecessor corporate identity associated with BHE Renewables.","official_url":"https://www.bherenewables.com"} — Fitch Issues Presale Report for Solar Star Funding, LLC's $700MM Series A Senior Secured Notes · confidence: medium
- Timeline.3: {"event":"Initial grid synchronization","date":"2013-10","detail":"The first phase of the Solar Star project synchronized to the California Independent System Operator grid."} — Solar Star Projects, Antelope Valley, California, USA · confidence: medium
- Timeline.4: {"event":"Initial test operation","date":"2013","detail":"A regulatory filing reported that construction of Solar Star 2 had started and that initial test operation began in the fourth quarter of 2013."} — 20140102-5154 FERC PDF (Unofficial) 1/2/2014 1:20:25 PM · confidence: medium
- Timeline.7: {"event":"Full-scale commissioning","date":"2015-06","detail":"The combined Solar Star project reached full-scale commissioning and began sending its full 579 MW output into the CAISO grid in June 2015."} — Solar Star Projects, Antelope Valley, California, USA · confidence: medium
- Timeline.9: {"event":"Inverter replacement modernization","date":"2025","detail":"S&P Global reported that the Solar Star project completed its 2025 inverter replacement program on time and on budget; the cited record does not characterize this work as a capacity expansion or retirement."} — Solar Star Funding LLC 'BBB' Debt Rating Affirmed | S&P Global Ratings · confidence: medium
- Quality notes.0: Acquisition value, construction budget, bond proceeds, and operating-capacity figures in the cited transaction and rating materials generally refer to the combined Solar Star 1/2 project rather than Solar Star 2 alone; no Solar Star 2-only allocation is disclosed. — Project Bonds: Solar · confidence: medium
- Quality notes.0: Acquisition value, construction budget, bond proceeds, and operating-capacity figures in the cited transaction and rating materials generally refer to the combined Solar Star 1/2 project rather than Solar Star 2 alone; no Solar Star 2-only allocation is disclosed. — Solar Star Projects, Antelope Valley, California, USA · confidence: medium
- Quality notes.1: EIA reports 279 MW for Solar Star 2, while an S&P financing description reports 276 MW AC for the Solar Star 2 component within a different aggregate project-capacity presentation. — Solar Star · confidence: high
- Quality notes.2: BHE Renewables separately identifies Solar Star 3 and 4 as later solar-plus-storage projects; those projects are not included in this Solar Star 2 history. The 2025 inverter replacement program is reported as operational modernization, not as a documented capacity expansion or retirement. — Solar Star Funding LLC 'BBB' Debt Rating Affirmed | S&P Global Ratings · confidence: medium
- Quality notes.2: BHE Renewables separately identifies Solar Star 3 and 4 as later solar-plus-storage projects; those projects are not included in this Solar Star 2 history. The 2025 inverter replacement program is reported as operational modernization, not as a documented capacity expansion or retirement. — Solar Star · confidence: medium
- Grid role: Utility-scale solar generation supplying the wholesale market and Southern California Edison under long-term power-purchase agreements. — Solar Star · confidence: medium

## Sources

- [Solar Star](https://www.bherenewables.com/solar-star) — bherenewables.com · tier other
- [CAISO Resource Visibility Template](https://www.caiso.com/documents/caiso-resource-visibility-template.xlsx) — caiso.com · tier other
- [Solar Star Projects, Antelope Valley, California, USA](https://www.nsenergybusiness.com/projects/solar-star-projects-california/) — nsenergybusiness.com · tier other
- [Solar Star I & II Solar | Mortenson](https://www.mortenson.com/projects/solar-star-i-and-ii) — mortenson.com · tier other
- [Solar Star Funding LLC 'BBB' Debt Rating Affirmed | S&P Global Ratings](https://www.spglobal.com/ratings/en/regulatory/article/-/view/type/HTML/id/3597933) — spglobal.com · tier other
- [Source](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1081316/000108131613000022/mehc63013ex42.htm) — sec.gov · tier regulatory
- [Source](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/867773/000086777313000012/ex10_96x12302012.htm) — sec.gov · tier regulatory
- [Drones, Robots and Fully Integrated Design: Third-Generation SunPower® Oasis® Platform Reinvents Solar Power Plants](https://www.multivu.com/players/English/7706153-sunpower-oasis/) — multivu.com · tier other
- [Patents | Explore Our Innovation](https://www.maxeon.com/patents) — maxeon.com · tier other
- [Source](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/867773/000086777317000013/spwr_01012017x10-k.htm) — sec.gov · tier regulatory
- [SunPower – Powering a Brighter Future | SunPower®](https://us.sunpower.com/) — us.sunpower.com · tier other
- [Project Bonds: Solar](https://www.ca-cib.com/sites/default/files/2018-11/Project%20Bond%20Focus%202018%20-%20Solar%20_%20FINAL.PDF) — ca-cib.com · tier other
- [Fitch Issues Presale Report for Solar Star Funding, LLC's $700MM Series A Senior Secured Notes](https://www.fitchratings.com/research/infrastructure-project-finance/fitch-issues-presale-report-for-solar-star-funding-llc-700mm-series-a-senior-secured-notes-13-06-2013) — fitchratings.com · tier other
- [20140102-5154 FERC PDF (Unofficial) 1/2/2014 1:20:25 PM](https://pscdocs.utah.gov/electric/14docs/1403503/250780ExACommDPU2-3-2014.pdf) — pscdocs.utah.gov · tier regulatory
- [MidAmerican Solar and SunPower Start Major Construction on World's Largest Solar Power Development](https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/midamerican-solar-and-sunpower-start-major-construction-on-worlds-largest-solar-power-development-204939201.html) — prnewswire.com · tier other
- [Source](https://nsenergybusiness.com/projects/solar-star-projects-california) — nsenergybusiness.com · tier other
- [Source](https://bherenewables.com/solar-star) — bherenewables.com · tier other
- [Geronimo Energy Sells Portfolio of Wind and Solar Energy Projects to BHE Renewables](https://www.24-7pressrelease.com/press-release/407140/geronimo-energy-sells-portfolio-of-wind-and-solar-energy-projects-to-bhe-renewables) — 24-7pressrelease.com · tier other
- [Solar Star](https://www.pv-tech.org/wp-content/uploads/legacy-publication-pdfs/b3bab2f70c-solar-star-inside-the-worlds-biggest-solar-plant.pdf) — pv-tech.org · tier other
- [2026 NQC List](https://www.caiso.com/documents/net-qualifying-capacity-report-for-compliance-year-2026.xlsx) — caiso.com · tier other
- [Resource category and phase](https://www.caiso.com/documents/resourcecategoryandphaseallparticipatingresourceids.xlsx) — caiso.com · tier other

## Data quality

- Acquisition value, construction budget, bond proceeds, and operating-capacity figures in the cited transaction and rating materials generally refer to the combined Solar Star 1/2 project rather than Solar Star 2 alone; no Solar Star 2-only allocation is disclosed. EIA reports 279 MW for Solar Star 2, while an S&P financing description reports 276 MW AC for the Solar Star 2 component within a different aggregate project-capacity presentation. BHE Renewables separately identifies Solar Star 3 and 4 as later solar-plus-storage projects; those projects are not included in this Solar Star 2 history. The 2025 inverter replacement program is reported as operational modernization, not as a documented capacity expansion or retirement.

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Canonical page: https://askthegrid.com/assets/facilities/solar-star-2

Source: Ask the Grid — https://askthegrid.com/