San Gorgonio Pass wind farm

The San Gorgonio Pass wind farm is a wind farm that stretches from the eastern slope of the San Gorgonio Pass, near Cabazon, to North Palm Springs, on the western end of the Coachella Valley, in Riverside County, California. Flanked by Mount San Gorgonio and the Transverse Ranges to the North, and Mount San Jacinto and the Peninsular Ranges to the South, the San Gorgonio Pass is a transitional zone from a Mediterranean climate west of the pass, to a Desert climate east of the pass. This makes the pass area one of the most consistently windy places in the United States.

Development of the wind farm began in the 1980s. It is one of the first three major wind farm areas in California, along with those at Altamont and the Tehachapi passes.

As of May 2025, the wind farm consists of 667 wind turbines with a total rated capacity of 656 MW, built as part of 27 projects. The rated power output is somewhat understated, since the official database includes several unidentified turbines that are known to be in the 3-4 MW range. In December 2021 the site hosted more than 1,220 turbines, down from a peak of more than 4,200 in 1987. The reduction is the result of repowering, where many small, obsolete turbines are replaced with fewer, larger turbines.

The San Gorgonio Pass is now home to the Desert Peak Energy Facility, a battery energy storage system located adjacent to the Devers electrical substation. Phase I of the facility came online in 2023, while Phase II is anticipated in the coming years.