SAN TAN VALLEY, Arizona — The Pinal County Board of Supervisors has approved zoning changes and a comprehensive plan amendment that clear the way for construction of a major battery energy storage system in San Tan Valley, adding 2,000 megawatt-hours of storage capacity to the region's power grid.
The Copper Basin Energy Storage facility, developed by Plus Power, will occupy 25 acres at the southwest corner of Bella Vista and Attaway roads, bordered on three sides by Salt River Project's 270-acre Copper Crossing Energy and Research Center. The facility is designed to deliver 250 megawatts of power — enough to serve approximately 100,000 homes for eight to 12 hours during a grid outage.
> "We all know that power is a big deal. Available electricity at peak times is very important for our communities as a whole," said Supervisor Mike Goodman, who represents the San Tan Valley area. "They didn't want this to be delayed in any form or fashion."
The project sits less than one mile from the Abel substation and critical transmission lines, positioning it to strengthen grid reliability across the fast-growing East Valley. The board approved a non-major comprehensive plan amendment, a rezoning from general rural to industrial, and a planned area development overlay that restricts the property to battery energy storage use only.
Vice Chairman Jeff Serdy voiced support for the approach, noting that because the system draws power from the existing grid rather than requiring a new solar field, it "makes the grid stronger" without the land-use concerns of large-scale solar development. The facility is expected to operate for approximately 25 years.
