TEP is seeking approval from the City of Tucson to rezone 218 acres adjacent to our Vail Substation, located near Interstate 10 and South Rita Road, from rural homestead zoning to industrial zoning.
The site will house new 230-kilovolt (kV) substation facilities designed to interconnect with the planned Vail to Tortolita 230 kV Transmission Line Project, which will strengthen reliability and serve growing energy needs throughout the Tucson area.
TEP’s rezoning proposal also is designed to accommodate the potential development of a battery energy storage system. The Vail Substation site is well-suited to accommodate an energy storage system due to its location within TEP’s local energy grid, its ability to support transmission lines operating at many different voltages, and other factors.
In TEP’s 2020 Integrated Resource Plan (IRP), we outlined our plan to provide more than 70 percent of our power from wind and solar resources while reducing carbon emissions 80 percent and reducing groundwater use 70 percent by 2035. To reach these ambitious, achievable goals, TEP will gradually reduce our reliance on coal while also expanding use of energy storage systems.
TEP is evaluating options to add energy, capacity and renewable systems to our portfolio. TEP issued an all-source request for proposals (ASRFP) in April 2022, seeking new wind and solar generation, energy storage systems and other resources.
