US Battery Boom Could Power Tucson's Clean Energy Future

For the first time in history, American factories can produce 100 percent of the grid battery storage systems the country needs, with capacity doubling what we'll actually install this year.

The timing couldn't be better for Tucson. The city has been debating whether to buy its electric utility, Tucson Electric Power, from its Canadian corporate owner, Fortis Inc., and transform it into a locally controlled clean energy powerhouse.

By the end of 2024, US manufacturers will produce 145 gigawatt-hours of battery storage capacity annually. Industry experts are calling it one of the fastest industrial scale-ups in recent American history.

This breakthrough solves the old problem with renewable energy: storage. Solar panels only work when the sun shines, and wind turbines only spin when it's breezy, but batteries can store that power for whenever it's needed.

For Tucson, blessed with 350 days of sunshine annually, the combination of abundant solar energy and American-made battery storage opens an extraordinary door. A city-owned utility could move faster than a corporation focused on shareholder returns, building a grid powered primarily by desert solar paired with reliable battery storage.

The technology is proven. Sacramento's municipal utility, SMUD, already leads California in customer satisfaction and renewable energy deployment, while keeping rates lower than investor-owned competitors.

The Ripple Effect

The benefits extend beyond electricity bills. A municipally owned TEP could blanket Tucson with fast EV chargers, offer special overnight rates for electric vehicle owners, and partner with local employers to electrify delivery trucks and fleet vehicles.

That means cleaner air for Tucson's kids and freedom from the wild swings of global oil markets. When gas prices spiked above $4 a gallon recently, it served as a reminder that fossil fuel prices will always be vulnerable to geopolitical chaos and supply disruptions.

Other cities are watching closely. The Salt River Project, serving Phoenix, operates more efficiently than investor-owned utilities while maintaining lower rates, proving the municipal model works in Arizona's desert climate.

The convergence is striking: breakthrough battery manufacturing, proven renewable technology, 350 days of annual sunshine, and an electric utility currently answering to shareholders in Canada instead of residents breathing Tucson's air.

Local control means local priorities, and those priorities could transform Tucson into a proving ground for what American cities can achieve when they take clean energy seriously.

The battery revolution has delivered the tools Tucson needs to build a cleaner, more affordable energy future—now it's up to the city to use them.