PIONEER
Substation-AdjacentMaricopa County, Arizona · WECC
At a glance
PIONEER is a substation-adjacent datacenter candidate site in Maricopa County, Arizona, scoring 53.5/100 DC Readiness — 317th of 1,170 scored sites in the county. Its nearest substation is PIONEER (0 mi, 69 kV). It sits in the WECC grid region and the ARIZONA PUBLIC SERVICE CO service territory, where interconnection has averaged 3.5 years from request to operation. GridCensus catalogs 50 MW of candidate capacity here.
Power & interconnection
Speed to power
Deep queue and long historical waits — plan for a multi-year interconnection timeline and engage the utility early.
Connectivity
Risk & environment
Location context
Regulatory climate
Sales-tax exemption suspended Jul 2026–Jun 2029; water constraints add scrutiny.
Incentive detail: Government Property Lease Excise Tax (GPLET) for qualified facilities on government land.
Site location
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How does PIONEER compare with other sites in Maricopa County?
PIONEER ranks 317th of 1,170 scored candidate sites in Maricopa County. Its 53.5/100 is roughly in line with the county average of 51.6. It is about 10% above the Arizona average of 48.5 and roughly in line with the national average of 53.2.
Against the Arizona average, its strongest sub-score is fiber connectivity (80 vs 66) and its weakest is water (16 vs 17). Power and speed to power each carry 20% of the composite score, fiber 12%, water 7% and hazard 6%.
How close is PIONEER to power, fiber and other datacenters?
The nearest mapped substation, PIONEER, is about 0 miles away and operates at 69 kV. For connectivity, the nearest internet exchange facility is Flexential - Phoenix (PHX01) at 8 miles. 27 fiber providers report service at the location in FCC broadband data. The closest operating datacenter on record is Flexential Phoenix - Deer Valley, 8 miles away.
What are the flood, water and hazard risks at PIONEER?
At the county level, FEMA's National Risk Index rates Maricopa County "Relatively Low".
Full DC Readiness breakdown
All 13 weighted sub-scores (0–100) behind the composite DC Readiness score.
Nearby comparable sites
Other scored datacenter candidate sites in Maricopa County, ranked by DC Readiness.
| Site | Type | Voltage | Capacity | Queue wait | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| KYRENE | Substation-Adjacent | 500 kV | 1,000 MW | 3.5 yrs | 66.0 |
| RUDD | Substation-Adjacent | 500 kV | 1,000 MW | 3.5 yrs | 65.9 |
| PINNACLE PEAK APS | Substation-Adjacent | 500 kV | 1,000 MW | 3.5 yrs | 64.7 |
| WESTWING | Substation-Adjacent | 500 kV | 1,000 MW | 3.5 yrs | 64.1 |
| MORGAN | Substation-Adjacent | 500 kV | 1,000 MW | 3.5 yrs | 63.6 |
| WARD | Substation-Adjacent | 230 kV | 300 MW | 3.5 yrs | 63.3 |
| EC Near Crosscut | Greenfield | — | — | 3.5 yrs | 63.2 |
| OZ Maricopa | Greenfield | — | — | 3.5 yrs | 62.9 |
PIONEER: common questions
What is the DC Readiness score of PIONEER?
PIONEER scores 53.5/100 on the GridCensus DC Readiness scale, rated fair. It ranks 317th of 1,170 scored sites in Maricopa County. The Maricopa County average is 51.6 and the Arizona average is 48.5.
What is the nearest substation to PIONEER?
The nearest mapped substation is PIONEER, about 0 miles away, at 69 kV. GridCensus catalogs 50 MW of candidate capacity for the site.
Which electric utility serves PIONEER?
ARIZONA PUBLIC SERVICE CO (investor owned) holds the retail service territory that contains the site; its holding company is ARIZONA PUBLIC SERVICE COMPANY.
What grid region is PIONEER in?
PIONEER is in the WECC region. Projects interconnecting there have averaged a 3.5-year wait from queue request to operation.
How far is PIONEER from an internet exchange?
The nearest internet exchange facility is Flexential - Phoenix (PHX01), about 8 miles away; 27 fiber providers report service at the location.
Related pages
About this data
Source: GridCensus composite of HIFLD transmission and substation data, EIA, FEMA National Risk Index, FCC broadband data, PeeringDB and ISO interconnection queues, as published October 10, 2026 — GridCensus refreshes it monthly. See the methodology for how records are matched, cleaned and scored.
Cite as: GridCensus, “PIONEER, Maricopa County, AZ”, https://gridcensus.com/datacenter-sites/arizona/maricopa-county/pioneer-d71b48d5 (data as of October 10, 2026).
Dataset updated . Screening estimates derived from public data sources.
Figures are screening estimates derived from public infrastructure data. Catalogued capacity reflects theoretical candidate capacity, not deliverable or committed interconnection. Confirm all values with the utility, ISO, and on-the-ground due diligence.
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