PHOENIX – The Valley’s two primary electricity providers met record levels of peak energy demand on Wednesday, which was Phoenix’s hottest day of 2025.
Arizona Public Service and Salt River Project both saw previously unseen customer demand during a day Phoenix’s high temperature was 118 degrees.
Citing preliminary data, APS said customers used 8,527 megawatts of power between 5 and 6 p.m.
Meanwhile, SRP said it delivered 8,324 megawatts to its customers between 3 and 4 p.m.
One megawatt can power about 225 average homes, according to SRP.
APS and SRP both set their previous peak energy demand record on Aug. 4 of last year, when the high temperature in Phoenix was 116 degrees.
How do APS and SRP keep up with increasing peak energy demand?
APS said it invests more than $2 billion annually in electrical system upgrades, operations and maintenance.
The company’s record for peak energy demand has more than tripled since 1979 and is expected to reach more than 13,000 megawatts by 2038.
“Arizona is growing fast, and APS is building out the energy grid to keep pace. Our team monitors customer needs by the minute, plans decades ahead and covers everything in between,” Brian Cole, APS vice president of resource management said in a press release Thursday, which is National Lineworker Appreciation Day.
“From 24/7 nuclear to flexible natural gas, coal, solar, wind, battery storage and our partnerships with customers — we’re delivering reliable service with balanced resources at the lowest cost possible.”
Pam Syrjala, SRP senior director of supply and trading, said her company always plans ahead to meet peak energy demand during the summer.
“We engaged our demand response program and leveraged a diverse mix of generation — including solar, battery storage and natural gas — to maintain reliability for our customers,” Syrjala said in a press release.
How many customers get power from APS and SRP?
APS, which is owned by publicly traded Pinnacle West Capital Corp., serves about 1.4 million customers in 11 Arizona counties, making it the state’s largest power provider. The utility’s service area includes a portion of Phoenix along with Valley suburbs to the west and north.
Last month, APS filed an application with the Arizona Corporation Commission to raise rates by 14%. If it’s approved, the typical residential customer would pay an extra $20 on monthly electric bills by the second half of 2026.
SRP is the largest power provider in metro Phoenix, with about 1.1 million Valley customers.
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