Utility Dive reported on the Arizona Corporation Commission's vote rejecting a proposed gas plant expansion, quoting AEE's Shelby Stults on clean energy solutions utility Salt River Project can pursue instead. Read snippets below and the full article here.

The Arizona Corporation Commission voted 3-2 on Monday to deny rehearing and reconsideration of Salt River Project’s proposed 820-MW expansion of the gas-fired Coolidge Generation Station. Community and clean energy advocates say the utility failed to present new evidence in favor of the project, which the regulators initially rejected in April.

“There simply isn’t enough evidence to support that Coolidge would be the most economically sound option,” Advanced Energy Economy Arizona policy lead Shelby Stults said in an email. “Now, SRP can explore cleaner, more cost-effective energy options.”

Those could include clean generation sources, demand-side management and wholesale energy procurement, Stults said.

SRP has maintained the new gas generation is necessary to add additional renewables to its system. The utility said it is “disappointed” in the ACC’s decision and “will continue to evaluate what generation and market options to pursue in the near-term to address the resource challenge this decision creates.”

SRP also said it will also consider “whether to seek judicial review” before the Arizona Superior Court.

Read the full article here.