Arizona public power utility Salt River Project and Pattern Energy on July 8 announced that they have signed a power purchase agreement for 600 megawatts of wind energy from Pattern Energy’s SunZia Project.
"This agreement will help SRP meet growing energy demand across the Phoenix metropolitan area while maintaining affordability, reliability and sustainability for customers," SRP said.
SRP will receive 400 MW of energy beginning this fall and will increase its allocation to 600 MW by summer of 2027.
“This PPA highlights SRP’s leadership and our partnership, showing how a diverse and cost effective energy portfolio can meet Arizona’s needs today while supporting a reliable and resilient grid for the future,” said Pattern Energy’s Chief Executive Officer Hunter Armistead.
SunZia is set to deliver enough energy to power approximately one million American homes annually, representing an $11 billion energy investment across the Southwest, SRP said.
"Backed by a 3,650 MW wind resource and a 550 mile HVDC transmission line that efficiently moves large amounts of electricity across long distances, it adds a new, clean resource that contributes to SRP’s diverse portfolio of energy resources, which includes hydro, wind, natural gas, solar, battery storage and other generation," SRP said.
SRP currently has 288 MW of wind energy serving its customers. The energy from SunZia supports SRP’s plan to more than double the capacity of its power system by 2035 through the addition of thousands of megawatts of renewable energy, as well as natural gas and battery energy storage resources.
“This agreement with Pattern Energy plays a key role in SRP’s all-of-the-above approach to meeting the growing energy needs of the Phoenix metropolitan area reliably, affordably and sustainably,” said Bobby Olsen, SRP Associate General Manager and Chief Power System Executive. “This project will triple the amount of wind energy on SRP’s grid, helping us make progress toward our carbon reduction goals.”
