Independent Power Producer (IPP) Brightnight is seeking approval from the Arizona Corporation Commission (ACC) for a Certificate of Environmental Capability (CEC) to construct a generation tie-in transmission line (gen-tie) in La Paz County, Arizona, to connect its Eagle Eye Solar and Storage Project to the local grid.
The application, filed 3 September 2024, was lodged with the Arizona Power Plant and Transmission Line Siting Committee by BNC DEVCO, LLC – a joint venture formed in 2018 between West Palm Beach Florida-headquartered Brightnight and Toronto, Ontario-based developer Cordelio Power.
The Brightnight and Cordilio JV is developing renewable energy projects throughout the US, including a 200MW/800MWh BESS in Washington known as the Greenwater Storage Project for which the pair have contracted with utility Puget Sound Energy, as reported by Energy-Storage.news last week.
Lithium or helium co-located 400MW BESS
The Eagle Eye project is a proposed 400MW solar development co-located with a 400MW BESS across 3,9000 acres of land administered by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) located approximately 3 miles north of the Town of Wenden in La Paz County, Arizona.
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The developer expects to utilise lithium-ion battery technology for the Eagle Eye project from a “Tier-1 manufacturer” but is also considering using helium BESS technology according to documents filed with the BLM. Either way, the BESS will comply with the National Fire Protection Association 855 (NFPA 855), Standard for the Installation of Stationary Energy Storage Systems.
The project is expected to connect to the grid via Western Area Power Administration’s (WAPA’s) Harcuvar 230kV substation – for which the developer holds an interconnection queue position.
As well as an application with the ACC for the project’s grid connection infrastructure, the developer is also seeking federal approval of the solar and storage facility from the BLM through a Right-of-Way (ROW) application. Last week, the BLM issued a Notice of Segregation for the proposed Eagle Eye land, protecting it from mining for up to two years whilst the permitting process takes place.
The target in-service date for the project is December 2026.
NextEra: 150MW hybrid solar-plus-storage Selma Energy Center
Also occurring last week, Juno Beach, Florida-headquartered IPP NextEra Energy Energy Resources (NEER) filed a similar application with the ACC for the construction of a gen-tie line to connect its hybrid solar/storage Selma Energy Center to the grid.
The project, comprising 150MW of solar co-located with a 150MW lithium-ion BESS, is located west of the City of Coolidge in Pinal County, Arizona encompassing approximately 1,052 acres of land.
Interconnection to the grid will be via utility Salt River Project’s (SRP’s) Vah Ki 230kV substation.
NEER has already secured a Conditional Use Permit (CUP) from the City of Coolidge for a portion of the site, but still needs to obtain a non-major comprehensive plan amendment,
zone change, and Planned Area Development (PAD) from Pinal County.
The developer expects to invest US$389 million into the project which is expected online by December 2027.
‘Largest’ BESS in Arizona, and US$1 billion investment
Earlier this year, SRP and NEER announced that the Sonoran Energy Center was now operational, hailing it as the largest BESS in Arizona, as reported by Energy-Storage.news.
This is one of many NEER Arizona developments in Arizona, with others including a 450MW solar project paired with a 450MW BESS known as the Belmont Energy Center, located across 3,200 acres of land in Maricopa County.
The Belmont development will connect to Arizona Public Service’s (APS’) grid via the utility’s Delaney substation, as opposed to NEER’s Selma project which is also located in Arizona, but is expected to connect to the CAISO grid.
NEER expects to invest up to a US$1 billion into the Belmont project which is expected online as early as July 2026.
NEER’s impact can be felt across large portions of North America, with the IPP claiming to have some form of presence across 49 US states and four Canadian provinces.
The developer is planning some of the continent’s largest BESS projects, including its 600MW Roadhouse Energy Storage project located in the City of Ontario, California.
For further details on the development, including information relating to the project’s offtake agreement with a public utility, see this recent premium article from Energy-Storage.news.
