For the past 10 years, CAP has partnered with Arizona Public Service (APS) in Peak Solutions, a voluntary program that helps stabilize the energy grid through temporary load reduction.

CAP gets power from APS to run many of its facilities, including the Headquarters complex and recharge projects. By participating in Peak Solutions, during the hottest months of the summer, large demand users like CAP are asked to reduce power use during peak usage for a limited length of time, usually four hours. In return, CAP receives a rebate and gets to be part of something bigger – the opportunity to contribute to making reliable, lower-cost power available for those in our community that depend on APS.

The power reduction doesn’t impact water deliveries or CAP’s power rates. Prior to CAP’s participation in Peak Solutions, staff identified areas of power usage that could be reduced for short periods of time with minimal impact to CAP business. Several areas were identified, including lights, water heaters, air conditioning/evaporative coolers and compressors.

In 2021, CAP participated in six full-scale events throughout the summer, responding in less than 60 minutes each time. The load shedding events all began between 4-5 p.m. and ran until 9 p.m.; participation resulted in a power reduction of more than 830 kwh, making that power available for redistribution to critical areas throughout the grid.

Rebate checks are put back into CAP’s general fund.