Our region continues to grow rapidly. Growth is our future and we will manage it to benefit our customers, our shareholders, our employees and our state.

• APS experienced 3.1 percent customer growth (nearly 30,000 new customers) in 2002 – about three times the national average. Our customer base is projected to continue to grow about 3.5 percent annually in the next three years.
• Much of this growth occurs in the heart of our service territory – the greater Phoenix area. The Phoenix metro area issued nearly 41,000 building permits in 2002 – ranking second among the 10 largest metropolitan areas in the United States in building permits per 1,000 residents.
• As our customer base grows, we also are expanding our power resources. By bringing on line two new gas-fired units at the Redhawk Power Plant and a new unit at the Saguaro Power Plant, we added more than 1,000 megawatts of new generating capacity in 2002. In addition, a 530-megawatt unit at the West Phoenix Power Plant is expected to be completed in summer 2003, and the 570-megawatt Silverhawk Plant in summer 2004.
• As an internationally recognized leader in the research and development of solar technology, we are dedicated to finding renewable energy solutions for future generations. In 2002, APS began construction of the Prescott (Ariz.) Airport Solar Power Plant, which, when completed, should be the largest photovoltaic solar plant in the world. Completion of the solar plant is expected in the next five years, when the facility’s capacity will reach 5 megawatts.
• We expanded our transmission and distribution system in 2002, adding nearly 800 miles of wires. On average, a new substation was completed every seven-and-a-half weeks. We also began construction on a 500-kilovolt transmission line that, when completed in mid-2003, will bring needed transmission capacity to support the continued growth of the greater Phoenix area.