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Oak Creek to McGuireville 69kV Project
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About the Project
We plan to build a new 69kV power line to connect the Oak Creek substation (near Highway 179 and Jacks Canyon Road) and McGuireville substation (near Cornville Road and Restoration Loop). This project will increase reliability and redundancy in the communities of Sedona, Village of Oak Creek and the Verde Valley. Construction is expected to begin Summer 2025.
Strengthening Reliability
The project will add a new power line in order to strengthen reliability in the community. Currently, the McGuireville and Oak Creek substations are each served by single power lines. Adding a new line to connect the two substations will create a second line into each substation and will:
- increase reliability and reduce customer outages, and
- decrease restoration times when outages occur.
Given the potential risk of wildfire in this area, the new line will follow our wildfire safety guidelines, including vegetation management such as tree trimming, creating defensible space around poles by clearing vegetation and brush, and other operational protocols.
Project Route:
Contact Us
For questions or additional information regarding the project, please contact our Construction Outreach Consultant:
Teresa Makinen, MakPro, at 602-421-3069 or apsprojects@makprosvc.com or
Darla DeVille, APS Public Affairs Manager, at 928-499-9135 or Darla.Deville@aps.com.
Project Lifecycle
In order to build a new transmission line, planning, siting and permitting processes take place before construction can begin. This project is currently in the permitting phase with the Coconino National Forest. For more information, visit the Forest Service project page. Construction is expected to begin Summer 2025.
Community Updates:
Newsletter
Open House Boards
Route Options
USFS Coconino National Forest Scoping Letter
Frequently Asked Questions
The planning process started with a reliability evaluation of various options. Once the most efficient option was identified, the development of the project began. In 2018, APS evaluated route alternatives for the project, assessed potential environmental impacts and engaged with the public. Routes were developed and studied in detail and presented to the public at an Open House in the Village of Oak Creek on June 5, 2019. Community members provided input.
Because the route alignment will cross U.S. Forest Service land, we are coordinating with the Coconino National Forest. Please visit the National Forest project page for more details on the National Environmental Policy Act process. We have also engaged with the Yavapai County Board of Supervisors, Yavapai County Public Works Department, the Big Park Regional Coordinating Council and the Beaver Creek Community Association about the project and collected input.
APS works to balance the energy needs of our customers while protecting the environment and natural beauty of the area. The new power line will be built on steel single-circuit monopoles, approximately 65 ft feet in height. The poles are self-weathering and will take on a rust-colored look designed to blend with the red rock scenery in the area.
Along the route in some areas, the new line may consolidate with an existing line, requiring a double-circuit monopole (six total wires on the same pole). The typical right-of-way will be 30 to 40 feet wide to allow for construction and maintenance of the line.
Placing power lines underground is significantly more expensive than placing power lines overhead. This is due to additional required construction plus the use of special materials and conductors required for underground use. In particular, trenching or boring for the entire length of the power line can be difficult, expensive and have greater environmental impacts. Buried power lines can also extend power outages, as it may take additional time to locate a specific power issue, access the fault and repair it. Additionally, underground systems can be prone to flooding in certain conditions.
APS reviewed the cost to underground the entire project and determined it would not be in line with our commitment to keep our rates as low as possible. There were segments of the new line that were either deemed too unsuitable or too cost prohibitive.
- Undergrounding would impact multiple environmentally protected sites.
- Undergrounding would also require widening the right-of-way to safely maintain the underground and overhead lines, which would create a greater visual impact than the preferred alternative of combining a single, overhead line.
- The soil in the area is extremely rocky, which makes digging lengthy and costly. It also would likely require blasting to get through the larger underground boulders.
We are working with the Forest Service to identify areas where we could utilize a responsible project budget to underground as many miles of line as possible.
