The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has issued a preliminary permit to Pumped Hydro Storage LLC to study the feasibility of the proposed 1,500-MW Salt River Project Indian Spring Pumped Storage Project in Arizona.
Construction of the closed-loop pumped storage project, in Maricopa County, would involve building two new reservoirs. The lower reservoir would have a dam 260 feet high and 2,200 feet long, impounding a reservoir with a total storage capacity of 7,200 acre-feet at a normal maximum operating elevation of 4,580 feet mean sea level. The reservoir would be filled with water from wells located near Alder Creek at Lake Bartlett. The upper reservoir would have a dam 240 feet high and 1,000 feet long, impounding a reservoir with a total storage capacity of 9,600 acre-feet at a normal maximum operating elevation of 2,600 msl.
The proposed project would also involve construction of a powerhouse 900 feet long by 120 feet wide by 140 feet high. It would contain six 250-MW turbine-generator units. A new 200-foot-long, 245-kV transmission line would run from the powerhouse to an existing grid interconnection.
The proposed project would have an estimated average annual generation of 3,285 GWh
Pumped Hydro Storage filed the application for the preliminary permit in May 2019, amending the application in August 2019. The company requested a permit term of 36 months. The preliminary permit is effective Jan. 1, 2020, and lasts for 48 months.
The purpose of a preliminary permit is to preserve the right of the permit holder to have the first priority in applying for a license for the project that is being studied.
