LA Secures Solar Power for 214,000 Homes in Utah Deal

Los Angeles is proving that big climate goals can translate into real action, and the city's newest solar deal shows just how fast things are moving.

Mayor Karen Bass announced that LA has secured 300 megawatts of solar power from a massive new project in Utah. The energy will start flowing in June 2027 and is enough to power 214,000 homes for the next three decades.

The Utah Solar 1 project represents nearly 4% of LA's renewable energy needs. It will eliminate 165,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide every year, which equals taking 37,900 cars off the road permanently.

LA's water and power department will purchase the clean energy through a partnership with the Southern California Public Power Authority. The solar farm in Millard County, Utah, will feed directly into LA's power grid using transmission lines that already exist.

"Los Angeles is showing what real climate leadership looks like," Mayor Bass said. "We're not just setting goals, we're delivering results."

The city has already hit some remarkable milestones. LA completely divested from coal in December 2025, ending reliance on a fuel source that once provided 50% of the city's electricity. The Eland Solar-plus-Storage Center, completed in August 2025, now powers 260,000 households and helped push LA's clean energy supply past 60%.

The Utah project brings additional benefits beyond clean power. Construction will create 400 jobs at peak activity and generate $40 million in local tax revenue for Utah communities, plus $27 million in lease payments to the Utah Trust Lands Administration.

The Ripple Effect

LA's aggressive timeline is creating momentum across the entire region. The city aims for 80% renewable energy by 2030 and 100% by 2035, goals that seemed impossible just a decade ago.

Other cities are watching closely. As the nation's largest municipal utility, LA's success proves that massive urban areas can transition away from fossil fuels without sacrificing reliability or affordability.

The infrastructure being built today will serve multiple purposes too. The same transmission lines carrying solar power will eventually transport green hydrogen from Utah's Intermountain Power Project, creating even more clean energy options for Angelenos.

Mayor Bass has also pushed forward a Climate Action Plan with over 50 actions to reach carbon neutrality by 2045. The plan includes doubling local solar production and installing 120,000 EV chargers. LA already leads the nation with nearly 21,000 new EV chargers installed since Bass took office.

For a city known more for traffic jams than environmental wins, Los Angeles is writing a new story about what's possible when ambition meets action.