Renewable energy
Renewable resources are clean or "green" energy sources that have a much lower environmental
impact than conventional energy sources. Renewable resources are attractive because they are
replenished naturally -- which means they will never run out.
SRP's Board of Directors set voluntary goals in 2004 that include renewable energy resources and energy efficiency measures. Among them are a diversified resource mix of wind, geothermal, large hydro (added in 2007) and low-impact hydro, landfill gas and solar. The approved portfolio sets a target of 15% of SRP retail sales to be met through sustainable resources by fiscal year 2025. Currently SRP has obtained 5% of its 15% goal (4% renewables, 1% energy efficiency).
Renewable resources at SRP
At SRP, we pursue innovative and effective renewable energy solutions by:
-
Regularly expanding our energy portfolio to include a diverse mix of renewable energy technologies;
-
Tapping the expertise of partners, advisors and environmental leaders to refine our renewable
energy pursuits; and
-
Investing in educational programs and events that introduce students to renewable energy solutions.
SRP's total current renewable capacity is 493 megawatts (MW) and includes the following resources:
- Solar: 1 MW
- Wind: 50 MW
- Landfill gas: 4 MW
- Low-impact hydro: 5 MW
- Geothermal: 25 MW
- Hydro: 383 MW
- Unspecified: 25 MW (additional fuel purchased of varying combinations from above-listed sources)
SRP customers can support the production of green energy by participating in SRP's
EarthWise Energy™ program.
Solar electric plants use the sun, a free and inexhaustible source of fuel, to produce emission-free
electricity.
SRP installed a 200 kW solar electric system at the Agua Fria Generating Station in Glendale, as well as
two 100 kW solar electric systems at the Rogers Substation in Gilbert. Together, these three
plants send close to one million kilowatt-hours (kWh) of power to the grid each year, or enough energy to power
72 homes.
SRP has three primary avenues for generating solar power:
partnering with communities and businesses, SRP-owned facilities, and SRP subsidized customer-owned systems
through the EarthWise Solar Energy program. Some of these projects include solar facilities at
community parking garages and schools,
and partnering with homebuilders to install innovative solar technology projects.
To find out more, please see our generating solar page and our
solar energy page.
A landfill is not the place you would expect to find a source of clean energy. But landfill gas is a
reliable, renewable energy source that improves the environment.
Landfill gas is about 50% methane, a potent greenhouse gas that, if uncollected, might contribute
to global warming. The gas occurs naturally as waste decomposes in a landfill.
SRP's landfill gas project includes:
-
The Tri-Cities landfill gas facility: Completed in 2001, this four-megawatt
generation facility captures gas created by the Tri-Cities landfill. The gas is used to fuel five
internal combustion engines at the landfill's power generating facility. The Tri-Cities landfill
gas facility produces enough clean energy to power more than 2,000 homes each year.
Hydroelectric generation is an important part of the history of Salt River Project, and a technology that
remains core to our power production portfolio.
The water captured by SRP's dams on the Salt and Verde river systems store tremendous potential energy released
through hydroelectric generation stations built into five of SRP's seven dams: Theodore Roosevelt, Horse Mesa,
Mormon Flat and Stewart Mountain dams on the Salt River system; and C. C. Cragin Dam on the Verde system.
These generating facilities produce a combined 269MW of power to serve customers in the Valley.
SRP's system of canals also plays a part in utilizing the energy stored in water.
The term "low-impact" refers to hydrogeneration that produces clean power using a canal's
natural drop in elevation. Because a dam is not needed to create a drop in elevation,
no negative environmental impact is made on the site.
SRP installed a low-impact hydroelectric plant on the Arizona Canal at an historic site known as
Arizona Falls (located near 56th St. and Indian School).
SRP further diversified its renewable energy portfolio in October 2003 by entering into a five-year contract to
purchase 50 megawatts (MW) of wind power and associated renewable-energy credits from
Public Service Company of New Mexico.
The clean wind-generated energy will provide SRP with 61,600 MWh each year, or enough to
power more than 4,444 homes in the metropolitan Phoenix area.
Geothermal power is the better energy source in SRP's renewable energy lineup.
SRP has a five-year agreement, which began in June 2004, to purchase 25 MW of power and geothermal
renewable-energy credits from TransAlta Energy Marketing.
The renewable-energy credits are generated by geothermal power plants, located in California's
Imperial Valley, that produce electricity from naturally occurring geothermal steam. The steam
is formed when production wells tap into superheated water reservoirs thousands of feet beneath
the Earth's surface.
Instead of burning a fuel to heat water into steam as seen in conventional forms of generation,
heat from the Earth is used to create the steam that powers the turbines. Geothermal energy is
considered renewable energy because no fuel is consumed and the energy is from a naturally
occurring source.
SRP operates state's first hydrogen fuel cell plant
Arizona's largest renewable energy facility to date is the Snowflake White Mountain Biomass Power Plant. It is a wood-fired biomass energy plant that provides 24-megawatts (MW) of renewable energy to more than 9,000 Arizona homes.
The plant generates electricity through a wood-burning boiler using forest thinning (wood-waste material from the area's forest industries) and waste recycled paper fibers from an existing newsprint paper mill located adjacent to the biomass facility.
