ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥

Balanced growth. A rising tide. Sustainable development.

These aren’t just platitudes or distant aspirations. They are principles that help guide Tucson Electric Power (TEP) and the Chamber of Southern ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥, two organizations I am honored to lead.

Think for a moment about the kind of life you want here. Our visions may differ in detail, but most of us share some common goals: finding fulfilling work, providing for our families, and seeing our communities thrive.

The only way to make those goals more broadly achievable in our community is through strong job growth. We must find ways to support robust economic development while protecting working families and ensuring that our community benefits from new opportunities.

Shutting down promising new development out of fear of exploitation will not improve our local quality of life. If no new jobs are created, Tucson cannot grow or prosper. The Chamber of Southern ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥ wants to partner with all stakeholders — local government, business leaders, academic institutions, labor unions, citizens, and others — to shape the economy we want. We must find ways to welcome new businesses, foster innovation, protect our environment, and create opportunities for all.

TEP can help our community capitalize on those opportunities by expanding access to affordable, reliable energy. While we can’t pick and choose our customers, we can ensure that new businesses with large energy needs don’t compromise the reliability, affordability, or increasing sustainability of our service.

This strategy is reflected in our energy supply agreement to serve the potential data center previously known as Project Blue. This agreement, submitted for ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥ Corporation Commission review this week, ensures that the project will pay its own way and provide benefits for other TEP customers.

Many have rightly asked: Will the buildout of infrastructure for a data center drive up electricity rates? What happens if the center uses less energy than projected? The agreement addresses these concerns directly:

No subsidies from other customers. The data center will be billed under an ACC-approved tariff for large customers, covering TEP’s full cost of service to the center.

Minimum monthly billing safeguards. Even if energy use falls below contracted levels, the data center will pay for the capacity it reserved —protecting other customers from shouldering those costs.

Shared long-term benefits. While the center will fund new infrastructure to meet its demand, those upgrades will improve grid efficiency and help reduce costs across our system.

This is what balanced growth looks like: Welcoming new investment while protecting longtime residents, building for the future while strengthening the present.

Tucson’s future depends on the choices we make today. By working together, we can grow in ways that lift every part of our community — creating jobs, protecting families, and building a stronger economy for generations to come.