Desert Basin — Plant Summary
- EIA Plant ID
- 55129
- Capacity
- 745.1 MW
- Primary Fuel
- Natural Gas
- Technology
- Natural Gas Fired Combined Cycle, Natural Gas Fired Combustion Turbine
- Status
- Operating
- Location
- Pinal, AZ
- Operating Since
- 2001
- Generators
- 5
- Operator
- Salt River Project
- Parent Company
- Salt River Project
- Annual Generation
- 2,084,973 MWh
- Capacity Factor
- 31.8%
- Balancing Authority
- Salt River Project
- ISO/RTO
- —
- NERC Region
- WECC
Desert Basin
OperatingNatural GasHybrid
Ranked #7 of 33 Natural Gas plants in AZ#273 of 2009 nationally
745.1 MW Natural Gas Fired Combined Cycle (646 MW) + Natural Gas Fired Combustion Turbine (99 MW) operating in Pinal, AZ — Salt River Project
EIAWD
745.1 MW
Nameplate Capacity
5
Generators
units
Hybrid (2)
Technology
Natural Gas Fired Combined Cycle + Natural Gas Fired Combustion Turbine
2001
Operating Since
Location
Coordinates
32.9042, -111.7889
County
Pinal, AZ
Nearby Plants
- Granite Falls WalmartDistillate Oil2.2 MW · 4.2 km
- Union HS at Casa GrandeSolar1.6 MW · 5.9 km
- Vista Grande HS at Casa GrandeSolar1.4 MW · 7.2 km
Ownership & Operator
| Field | EIA | GEM | Wikidata |
|---|---|---|---|
| Operator | Salt River Project | Salt River Project | — |
| Owner(s) | Salt River Project | Salt River Project | — |
| Status | Operating | — | — |
Ownership Chain
About
Desert Basin is a 745.1 MW hybrid natural gas power plant located in Pinal County, Arizona. The plant began operating in 2001 and is owned and operated by Salt River Project. It consists of five generators utilizing both natural gas-fired combined cycle and natural gas-fired combustion turbine technologies. Desert Basin ranks as the 7th largest power plant in Arizona out of 26, and 278th nationally out of 945 plants.
The plant operates within the Salt River Project balancing authority and the Western Electricity Coordinating Council (WECC) NERC region. In the latest year of available data, Desert Basin generated 2,084,973 MWh of electricity, achieving a capacity factor of 31.8%.
Generated from EIA, GEM, and public data sources
Engineering & Generators
Grid Context
NERC Region
WECC
Balancing Authority
Salt River Project
Grid Voltage
230 kV
Regulatory Status
RE
Entity Type
Political Subdivision
Sector
Electric Utility
Generation
81.6K MWh
Latest Month
2.1M MWh
Annual Generation
31.8%
Capacity Factor
Jan 2023 – Dec 2025
Financial Data
No financial data available for this plant.
Pricing & Market Data
This plant is outside organized wholesale electricity markets (ISOs/RTOs). Nodal pricing data is not available.
News & Articles (10)Beta
General
Arizona solar policy hinges on this year’s Salt River Project elections
The vote, which takes place between March 11 and April 7, will determine the leadership of the Salt River Project and could have profound...
pv magazine USA·2 weeks ago
Industry·corporate
Data Center Demand Prompts Capacity Boost In Energy Transfer Pipeline Project
Desert Southwest expansion project capacity increases to 2.3 bcf/d.
Energy Transfer (operator)
Gas Compression Magazine·3 months ago
General
SRP wants to convert this coal unit to natural gas. What it means for your energy mix
Salt River Project hopes to convert a coal-fired unit to natural gas at Springerville Generating Station, one of Arizona's last remaining...
azcentral.com and The Arizona Republic·5 months ago
General
Salt River Project taps ESS for 50-MWh iron flow battery
ESS' stock price doubled in early Friday trading. The pilot project is expected to be online by the end of 2027.
Utility Dive·5 months ago
Last updated 2026-03-26
View all 10 articles