The Arizona Corporate Commission (ACC) has delivered a major blow to the Salt River Project Agricultural Improvement and Power District’s (SRP’s) urgent plans to expand the 575-MW gas-fired Coolidge Generating Station with 820 MW of fast-start capacity.
The ACC in a 4–1 vote on April 12 denied approval of the public power utility’s Certificate of Environmental Compatibility (CEC) for the gas power plant’s expansion, though approval had been recommended by the commission’s Arizona Power Plant and Line Siting Committee. ACC commissioners cited several concerns about SRP’s application, evidence on the record, and its process to garner enough public participation from residents in the nearby historically Black community of Randolph.
