Continued development of Copper Crossing

About the Copper Crossing Energy and Research Center

SRP is continuing the development and creation of the Copper Crossing Energy and Research Center on land owned by SRP adjacent to the existing Abel Substation on West Judd Road and the existing Copper Crossing Solar Ranch on West Bella Vista Road in Florence, Arizona.

The continued development will complement the existing solar generation at the site and is expected to feature generating resources needed to support and enable SRP’s transition to a more sustainable and lower carbon resource mix, including advanced solar technology, two flexible natural gas turbines with a total output of less than 99 megawatts (MW), and small-scale long-duration energy storage (LDES) technologies.

Presentation on Copper Crossing.

Phase I project information: Flexible natural gas generation

On Sept. 12, 2022, the SRP Board approved the first phase of continued development at the Copper Crossing site.

Phase 1 consists of the engineering, procurement, construction, commissioning and startup of flexible natural gas generation resources.

By summer of 2024, we will install two flexible natural gas turbines that will generate 99 MW of energy. In addition to the generating facility, there will also be a new 69-kilovolt (kV) substation constructed adjacent to the existing SRP Abel Substation.

Phase I progress:

General construction activities for Phase 1 began in November 2022.

The drilling phase to install a new on-site water well has been completed.

Equipment deliveries are expected to continue throughout spring of 2024. 

Transmission line construction began in late 2023. 

Construction activities will continue on-site through early summer of 2024.

Air permit application

The 30-day public comment period for the air permit application began on Jan. 26, 2023. A virtual public hearing was held on Feb. 27, 2023. The Pinal County Air Quality District issued an air quality permit document on May 4, 2023.

Phase II project information: Advanced solar generation

On Dec. 5, 2022, the SRP Board approved Phase II Advanced Solar Generation that will be located west of Attaway Road at the Copper Crossing Energy and Research Center.

Phase II details:

We are adding 55 MW of large-scale solar across 270 acres of SRP-owned land. This will generate enough carbon-free energy to power around 55,000 average-sized homes a year.

SRP will develop, own and operate the facility.

The proposed solar project will provide renewable energy that supports our 2035 Sustainability Goals.

The project is currently under design, and construction activities are anticipated to start in summer of 2024.

Phase III project information: Long-duration energy storage pilots

The SRP Board of Directors has approved Phase III at the SRP Copper Crossing Energy and Research Center that will include the installation of long-duration energy storage pilot projects.

Phase III details:

The first project is named Desert Blume and will use batteries made by CMBlu Energy, based in the U.S. and Germany.   

CMBlu’s technology uses nonflammable materials and is expected to have a longer life than typical lithium-ion batteries, an important factor for long-running utility applications.

These batteries support ongoing research on long-duration energy storage development.

SRP selected this promising technology from a competitive bidding process which sought alternatives to lithium-ion batteries with a 10-hour duration to enable storing daytime solar energy for nighttime use.    

This project is expected to store enough energy to power 1,125 homes for 10 hours.

SRP is working with the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) to evaluate the performance of these pilot projects and will use the findings to make decisions that will help meet our 2035 Sustainability Goals.

Desert Blume project anticipated timeline:

• Early 2025 – start construction
• Late 2025 – project is completed and online

Press Release - Salt River Project and CMBlu Energy Announce Launch of Innovative Long-Duration Energy Storage Project

On June 26, 2024, SRP issued a Request for Proposal (RFP) for a second long-duration energy storage project at Copper Crossing with a target online date of no later than 2028. SRP is searching for projects with a capacity of 5 MW and a duration of 10 hours.

Press Release - SRP Issues RFP for Long Duration Energy Storage Projects.

Contact us

For questions about the Copper Crossing Energy and Research Center, please call (602) 236-2872 or email 2872line@srpnet.com.