The Arizona Corp. Commission’s power plant and transmission line siting committee will consider an application a half-mile 230 kilovolt transmission line and 230 kV substation in Mesa at a public hearing beginning at 1 p.m. June 27. The meeting will be at the Delta Hotels by Marriott Phoenix Mesa, 200 N. Centennial Way in Mesa.

The hearing will continue June 28, 2022, at 9 a.m. and each following weekday through completion of the hearing. The hearing will be available to view online, by phone or in-person. Zoom links for the hearing will be added to the project webpage srp.net/huckleberry. You may also visit azcc.gov for information regarding the hearing schedule.

On May 10, SRP filed an application for a certificate of environmental compatibility with the ACC for the proposed “Project Huckleberry” transmission line and substation to serve energy to the data center being built for Meta and slated to be fully operational by 2024, according to a release.

The data center continues the Phoenix area’s growth in the technology sector and is expected to create approximately 100 high-wage jobs upon its completion and around 1,500 jobs during its construction. SRP supports long-term economic development in the communities it serves by providing reliable power to its customers, the release states.

Meta’s data center is under development at the southeast corner of Elliot and Ellsworth Roads. Project Huckleberry consists of a proposed 230 kilovolt double-circuit transmission line that will connect the proposed Prickly Pear 230 kV Substation to the certificated Southeast Power Link 230 kV transmission line by following along an existing flood control channel and a 69kV transmission line under development for a half mile. As the primary beneficiary of Project Huckleberry, Meta is funding the cost of SRP’s electrical infrastructure required to serve its facility.

Public comment will be taken in a special evening session at 5:30 p.m. Monday, June 27, 2022, in person and virtually.

Following the hearings, the siting committee will issue or deny the certificate, which requires final approval by the ACC.

SRP is a community-based, not-for-profit public power utility and electricity provider in the greater Phoenix metropolitan area, serving approximately 1.1 million customers. SRP provides water to about half of the Valley’s residents, delivering more than 244 billion gallons of water — 750,000 acre-feet) — each year, and manages a 13,000-square-mile watershed that includes an extensive system of reservoirs, wells, canals and irrigation laterals.