For Immediate Release  |  February 13, 2017

Tucson, Ariz. – Tucson Electric Power (TEP) joined other owners of the Navajo Generating Station today in voting to continue operations at the plant through December 2019 if a lease extension agreement can be reached with the Navajo Nation.

The three-unit, 2,250-megawatt (MW) facility is located in Northern Arizona near Page on land leased from the Navajo Nation. Phoenix-based Salt River Project operates the plant and owns 43 percent of its output. Other owners include the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, Arizona Public Service and NV Energy. TEP is the plant’s smallest stakeholder with ownership of 7.5 percent, or 168 MW.

Without the lease extension, owners would be forced to shut down the coal-fired plant later this year to allow enough time for decommissioning work to be completed before the current lease expires.

A lease extension would continue power production, maintain plant employment and preserve revenues for the Navajo Nation and Hopi Tribe, providing continued support for the area economy.

“We recognize the Navajo Generating Station’s value and support a lease extension that would allow operations to continue through 2019 as we continue to explore options for the plant’s future,” said David G. Hutchens, TEP’s President and CEO.

“We look forward to working toward a long-term solution for NGS that balances the needs of the plant’s many stakeholders and serves the best interests of our customers and the community we serve.”

TEP provides safe, reliable electric service to approximately 417,000 customers in Southern Arizona. For more information, visit tep.com. TEP and its parent company, UNS Energy, are subsidiaries of Fortis Inc., which owns utilities that serve more than 3 million customers across Canada and in the United States and the Caribbean. To learn more, visit fortisinc.com.

News Media Contact: Joseph Barrios, 520-884-3725, jbarrios@tep.com