Beale Proposing 600-Acre Data Center Campus in Marana

Data center developer Beale Infrastructure is planning a 600-acre data center campus in Marana.

The company plans to acquire two sites of approximately 300 acres each for the project. One property is owned by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The other is owned by the Kai Family Trust. The adjacent sites are across from the Arizona Veterans Memorial Cemetery, with Pinal Airpark Road as the northern boundary.

The land is more than a mile away from the nearest residential subdivision.

Beale is also still trying to develop a 290-acre data center project elsewhere in Pima County. That project hit a snag when annexation and other plans were rejected by the City of Tucson earlier this year after facing significant local opposition. Beale is now trying to develop the property under Pima County guidelines, having revised the plan significantly in the interim.

AZBEX was the first news outlet to report on the specific area plan proposal that would eventually become Project Blue and has followed the development details extensively.

Plan Details

Beale’s plan for the site includes a closed loop system that uses air cooling, thus requiring less water than previously common water-intensive systems.

Potable water would be provided by Marana Water. Non-potable water totaling 40 acre-feet for landscaping and other uses would come from the Cortaro-Marana Irrigation District. District officials said the District provides roughly 2,000 acre-feet/year for agricultural uses on similarly sized properties.

Precise water use projections at the planned site are not available, since water model data and demand reports have not been provided, according to Marana representatives.

One of the properties is serviced by Tucson Electric Power. TEP representatives said a proposed energy service agreement has not been put in place. For the project to proceed, an agreement must be filed with the Arizona Corporation Commission and include protections for other customers.

The second property is serviced by Trico Electric Cooperative, Inc. No status details were available.

Beale has said it does not yet know its power requirements for the project. It is working with both providers to consider the feasibility of providing the properties with between 550MW and 750MW per/year. No determination has been made as to how much power could be served by the existing grid and how much would require new solutions.

Marana is one of several jurisdictions that has put restrictions in place concerning data center developments. The Town is currently reviewing Beale’s applications under the terms of its data center ordinance.

Marana’s rules prohibit data centers from using the Town’s potable water supplies for cooling purposes and place approval at the Town Council’s sole discretion. (Source)