Guest Contributor
Andy Tobin
There has been a lot of interest and focus by Arizona policymakers on the environmental virtues of nuclear energy. They are absolutely right: nuclear power is a clean-energy marvel. As a former Corporation Commissioner, I advocated for nuclear as part of the backbone of our energy grid, alongside natural gas. Nuclear鈥檚 reliability is unmatched, and its footprint is impressively small. Our Palo Verde Generating Station is a crown jewel of our grid, providing 27% of our state鈥檚 electricity.
However, in the world of energy policy, there isn鈥檛 a “silver bullet.” We need “silver buckshot.” We don鈥檛 have to choose between nuclear and renewables 鈥� we need an energy portfolio that includes both. That keeps prices low for Arizonans and meets our skyrocketing energy demand.
The Power of the Market
For those of us who believe in the power of markets, the best news isn’t found in a government mandate 鈥� it鈥檚 found in the competitive 鈥淎ll-Source RFP” process used by our major utilities. Today, when Arizona needs new power, we don’t pick winners and losers from the Capitol Mall in Phoenix. We let the market decide.
In these processes, technologies compete. What we are seeing is that renewable projects are winning a seat at the table not because of a mandate, but because they are often the most cost-effective way to protect ratepayers’ wallets while meeting our surging energy demands. By 2027, APS intends to add over 6,000 MW of renewable power, integrated with battery storage. 鈥� enough to power 450,000 homes.
One important reason why is that utility-scale renewables can be built now. Despite the need and ongoing work to reform federal permitting, advanced nuclear and small modular reactors take years 鈥� or decades 鈥� to plan, permit, and build.
In contrast, solar and wind projects can be deployed with incredible speed 鈥� often in less than 24 months. By embracing renewables today, we get the immediate “juice” our grid demands, while we work together to build the nuclear backbone of tomorrow.
A Diverse Energy Portfolio
The Arizona Corporation Commission decades-old renewable mandates, citing the fact that these technologies can now stand on their own two feet in a free market. This is a victory for conservative principles. It shows that renewable energy is no longer a liberal project 鈥� it is a business project.
Champions of nuclear power are right that it is cleaner than many realize. But let鈥檚 also remember that solar and wind provide stable income for rural ranchers, tax revenue for our local schools, and one way to generate power without exhausting our most precious natural resource: water.
Arizona鈥檚 energy future demands a diverse approach 鈥� 鈥渟ilver buckshot鈥� not a 鈥渟ilver bullet.鈥� More nuclear, more natural gas, and more renewables. My hope is that we can move past the either/or debates and focus on an all-of-the-above strategy that keeps Arizona鈥檚 lights on and economy moving at full speed.
Andy Tobin is president and owner of Tobin Business Solutions LLC and director of The Western Way鈥檚 Arizona Rural Energy Network. He served as an Arizona Corporation Commissioner from 2016 to 2019 and represented District 1 at the Arizona Legislature from 2007 to 2015. He served as the speaker of the Arizona House from 2011 to 2014.
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