For the past 27 years, our Economic Development department has worked with state, regional and community partners to attract, expand and develop business and industry in Arizona. These recruitment efforts target base industries such as manufacturing, corporate headquarters, healthcare, data centers and other companies who offer competitive wages and benefits. Attracting companies in these sectors boosts the Arizona economy through job creation and capital investment expenditures while assisting electrical load growth for the company.
In 2019 we worked with partners such as the Arizona Commerce Authority, the Greater Phoenix Economic Council and other metropolitan and rural economic development organizations to attract 35 new and expanding companies to our service territory, including Red Bull.
Red Bull’s required a three-and-a-half-mile super feeder extension for an ultimate load of more than 13 megawatts. But APS was up to the challenge.
After 16 months and thousands of multi-departmental teamwork hours, the Red Bull facility was safely energized in April 2020. The 800,000 square-foot building is now manufacturing energy drinks.
"It is very satisfying to see a project of this size successfully energized on time," said Mark Gawlitta, APS customer project consultant. "The APS teamwork was extraordinary, especially wrapping up the project amid COVID-19 remote work practices and social distancing for those in the field.”
Richard Hammitt, APS supervisor of Metro Service Planning added, “The big wins do not come without great teamwork. Energizing Red Bull after 16 months of effort is no different. This team would not accept anything less than meeting and exceeding this customer’s aggressive schedule to receive power.”
Red Bull is the first of several large economic development projects on the Woolf Logistics Center property, located in Glendale, Ariz. White Claw, through Mark Anthony Brewing, is the next extra-large project on the list, with a very aggressive schedule APS is determined to meet.
On April 15, a year of hard work by Mark Gawlitta, Richard Hammitt, Jim Richey and many others came to fruition with the safe energizing of the Red Bull facility in Glendale," said Nic Fischer, a representative of the developer, Merit PartnersAZ. "Their dedication and diligence throughout the process allowed us to successfully navigate multiple challenges. We thank them for all of their efforts on making this project a success.”
Additionally, Ball Corp Cannery, a can manufacturer, has plans of making a new home right next to Red Bull. The pieces are fitting together like a well organized puzzle. The fourth project, Lager Haus, is planned to store and distribute the beverages, complete with railroads leading into these parcels.
“The announcement of these four companies expanding into Arizona is a win for the entire West Valley," said Kelly Patton, APS senior community development consultant. "The combined impact includes a total investment of $634 million, the creation of 530 new jobs and approximately 43 megawatts of new load growth added to the APS system. This level of investment, in addition to the construction of 2.1 million square feet, well positions Glendale as the next hot spot for manufacturing in the Phoenix region.”
Learn more about our economic development efforts.