The Arizona Corporation Commission (ACC; Phoenix, Arizona) voted unanimously to confirm a certificate of environmental compatibility for the Palo Verde-to-Pinal West Project. The vote follows a March recommendation by the Arizona Power Plant and Transmission Line Siting Committee on a route for the project.

The project consists of two new 500-kV transmission lines that will serve Pinal, Pima and Maricopa counties. The project manager for the Palo Verde-to-Pinal West Project is the Salt River Project (Tempe, Arizona). Other partners include the Arizona Public Service Co. (Phoenix), Tuscon Electric Power Co. (Tuscon, Arizona) and the Santa Cruz Water and Power Districts Association (Santa Cruz, California).

The new lines will start at the Hassayampa switchyard, located near the Palo Verde nuclear power plant, and will terminate at a new substation that will be located near the Maricopa/Pinal county line. Construction will begin in 2005, and the first line should be put into service by 2006. A study conducted by the Central Arizona Transmission System Study found that central Arizona requires significant expansion in its transmission delivery.
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