Lea Márquez Peterson - Commissioner and Past Chair

Thank you for reading Commissioner Márquez Peterson's ACC newsletter. She has served on the ACC since 2019 and is currently running for re-election. She has spent time on the Commission holding utilities accountable to Arizonans and fighting for affordable, reliable energy. Read more about her background at:

https://azcc.gov/lmarquezpeterson/biography

Powering Arizona’s Future

The Arizona Corporation Commission hosted an important discussion with our regulated utilities - their Integrated Resource Plans for the next 15 years. These plans are visible on each of their websites and show their load forecasts from Arizona's commercial and residential growth as well as their planned energy resource (Solar, Natural Gas, Wind, Nuclear, etc.) plans. Many stakeholders participated in the planning process. Commissioner Lea Márquez Peterson received several thank-you emails from consumers showing appreciation for her efforts in holding utilities accountable and protecting ratepayers. She appreciates the support and remains committed to fighting for affordable utility rates and ensuring energy reliability.

See the link below to hear their presentations and learn more about Arizona's energy future.

Integrated Resource Planning Workshop

Japanese Delegation

Visits ACC

Commissioner Lea Márquez Peterson recently met with an energy-focused Japanese delegation, which was hosted by Global Ties AZ and the U.S. Department of State's International Visitor Leadership Program. Former Commissioner Mr. Barry Wong, who is now the Board Chairman of Global Ties AZ, was also present at the meeting.

During the meeting, Commissioner Lea Márquez Peterson highlighted the Arizona Corporation Commission's important role in achieving grid reliability, stability, and affordability goals. She also discussed the differences in regulations between federal, state, and city levels. Because of Arizona's tremendous growth, she emphasized the need for utilities to submit a resource mix they believe will meet the energy needs of Arizonans over the next 15 years.

Enhancing Grid Reliability

Commissioner Lea Márquez Peterson is honored to be a part of the Gas-Electric Alignment for Reliability initiative, also known as GEAR. In November 2023, the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC) launched a 15-month effort to improve coordination between the electric and natural gas sectors, aimed at strengthening the reliability of the nation’s power grid. GEAR is a working group of state regulators and key industry experts with the perspectives and experience needed to address persistent problems and develop solutions.

Commissioner Márquez Peterson Advocates for Federal Energy Permitting Reform

Arizona continues to face incredible economic development and residential growth. At the Arizona Corporation Commission, one of our greatest challenges is balancing the need for energy generation and distribution, the affordability of our utility rates for our ratepayers and the demand for clean energy by many of the companies coming to our state.

On August 5th, Commissioner Lea Márquez Peterson sent letters to Arizona Senators Mark Kelly and Kyrsten Sinema seeking their support for the Energy Permitting Reform Act of 2024 to address these challenges.

The Energy Permitting Reform Act of 2024 is aimed at speeding up the lengthy permitting process energy projects face across the nation. The Act passed out of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee last week and now heads to the full Senate for consideration.

The passing of the Act is important to Arizona in many ways. From a national perspective, it will boost American energy and mineral production and ultimately will help lower costs for American families. Additionally, the passing of the Act will ensure that new transmission lines meaningfully improve electric reliability for all customers.

In Arizona, we are focused on approving projects proposed by our utilities to meet the 40% increase in energy demand estimated by APS and the steady growth we are seeing in other parts of our state. In order to build new solar, wind, natural gas plants, we need new transmission lines from other states in the West and within our state connecting our growing communities. The current federal permitting process is arduous and lengthy.

The passing of the Energy Permitting Reform Act of 2024 will provide an important step in streamlining the process, lessening the cost of compliance (which ultimately impacts our ratepayers) and allowing states like Arizona to provide the energy infrastructure at a faster pace to meet demand.

Analyzing Artificial Intelligence and Data Center Energy Consumption

The International Energy Agency projected that global data center electricity demand will more than double by 2026. Commissioner Lea Márquez Peterson recently participated in the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) Summer Seminar, which offered insights into AI and data centers' power advancements and discussed how utilities will manage the increasing load growth while ensuring consumer protection.

Click here to learn more

Arizona’s Energy Future Is Bright

Commissioner Lea Márquez Peterson gave a presentation to a group of real estate professionals and developers during an online lecture at the Arizona School of Real Estate. With Arizona experiencing significant growth, she focused on the state's reliable energy and discussed the measures taken by utility companies to meet the rising demand for electricity.

Visiting Lucid Motors in Casa Grande

Thank you to Lucid Motors for inviting Commissioner Lea Márquez Peterson to tour their manufacturing plant. After evaluating over 60 sites in 13 states for the Lucid Motors factory, Lucid chose a 500-acre property in Casa Grande, Arizona. This location, with its close proximity to critical utilities and an established transportation system, was further enhanced by the strong support from state and local governments. It was also an honor to see Casa Grande Mayor-elect Lisa Fitzgibbons!

Touring Red Bull Manufacturing

in the West Valley

The Commission recently toured Red Bull, Ball and Rauch manufacturing on the west side of Phoenix. Red Bull's first U.S based manufacturing facility is located in Glendale. Built in 2019, the 770,000 sq ft location contains three interconnected facilities with wall-to-wall conveyance from coil to can. The Arizona facility produces cans that are 100% recyclable, has one of the largest non-utility rooftop solar power systems in the U.S and water is recycled several times in the process.

Did you know?

WalletHub recently calculated the total monthly energy bills in each of the 50 states. Proud to see Arizona at #2 in the nation! As a Commission, we continue to focus on energy reliability and an all-of-the-above approach to ensure affordability for ratepayers.