SRP Hosts Public Open Houses on Springerville Coal-to-Gas Conversion Plan

Salt River Project already has unanimous Arizona Corporation Commission approval to convert Springerville Generating Station Unit 4 from coal to natural gas. What it doesn't have yet is a public answer to the questions Apache County residents most need addressed: what happens to local jobs, what the conversion means for county tax revenue, and who pays for decommissioning coal infrastructure when the work is done.

Two open houses this month offer the first structured chance to get those answers. SRP will hold an in-person session at Round Valley High School Auditorium, 550 N Butler St in Eagar, on Tuesday, April 14, from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. A virtual open house follows on Thursday, April 16, with presentations beginning at 5:30 p.m. SRP says subject matter experts will attend both events to field questions about the project's permitting, timeline, and community effects.

SRP, a not-for-profit public power utility serving roughly 1.1 million customers in the greater Phoenix area, describes the Unit 4 conversion as the lowest-cost way to preserve generating capacity at SGS while pursuing carbon-reduction goals. The December 2029 target for completing the conversion leaves roughly three and a half years for Apache County to secure commitments before construction planning locks in.

The project also requires a new natural gas pipeline, built and operated by a third-party supplier, to serve SGS Units 1, 2 and 4. SRP has not yet publicly disclosed the pipeline's route, which means landowners in the corridor could face easement negotiations before those specifics become available.

The Springerville Generating Station has long anchored jobs and property tax revenue in the Round Valley area. Coal operations involve fuel delivery, ash handling, and maintenance functions that natural gas plants generally require at smaller scale. Whether SRP will offer employment commitments, transition assistance, or retraining programs for workers affected by the shift is among the most concrete questions the April 14 session should surface.

Residents planning to attend should also push for post-conversion air emissions projections, water consumption estimates (natural gas generation still requires cooling water), and a clear accounting of who holds financial responsibility for removing coal-related infrastructure from the site.

SRP has asked attendees to RSVP through the project webpage, where additional materials and virtual registration are available. The utility said subject matter experts are also available for interviews with local media and civic leaders ahead of the open houses.

The Commission's unanimous vote means Unit 4's conversion is no longer a question of whether but when. The open house in Eagar on April 14 is about making sure Apache County shapes the answer to what comes next.