Substation Fire

On Sunday, July 4th, a massive fire in a major transmission substation in the  West Valley reduced electric power delivery to the Phoenix metropolitan area. APS is asking its customers to reduce electricity use daily between 3-6 p.m. until further notice. This will help reduce the possibility of involuntary curtailment to APS customers in the Valley.

Restoration of the substation will be a multi-step process. Our first step occurred July 8 when we placed one bank of transformers back in service. While this provided us with some additional load capacity for the Valley, it does not provide adequate capacity to meet the peak load we anticipate this summer. To meet our summer peak load, we need to have a second transformer bank in service.

APS has acquired a replacement transformer that, once installed and energized, will provide additional transmission capability for the Phoenix metropolitan region. The transformer, currently located in Washington state, was acquired from the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA), headquartered in Portland, Ore.  Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano and her staff played a critical role in expediting the required permitting processes necessary to move the 400,000-pound transformer from Washington to Arizona.

Until the replacement transformer is installed and energized, both APS and SRP continue to ask Valley residents for their continued support in reducing electricity usage between the critical hours of 3 and 6 p.m. daily.