A new solar farm is being built in rural Fort Bend County, Texas, just west of Houston. This farm will be producing energy using solar power, rather than growing crops. The farm will be the state's second-largest, spread over 1,500 acres of land. Spanish company Acciona Energy is behind the project, with the goal of having 590,000 solar panels installed to power the 317-megawatt plant.

Solar farms, also known as utility-scale solar applications, are becoming increasingly popular due to the decrease in cost of solar panels. Mel Besser, the deputy director of construction for the project, stated that solar panel prices have dropped by 90% over the last 20 years. This decrease in cost has made solar power more attractive as an energy source, particularly as the price of competing natural gas has risen.

A solar farm is a collection of photovoltaic solar panels, which are used to convert sunlight into electricity. There is no official number of panels or acres of land that qualify a project as a solar farm, but a peak output of one megawatt of power is often used as a standard. These utility-scale solar applications are becoming a more common sight across the country as they become more affordable and efficient.