What You Need to Know
About Project Baccara

On March 13, 2026, the Commander of the 56th Fighter Wing at Luke Air Force Base sent a letter to Maricopa County finding the project "not compatible" with base operations unless nine sets of conditions are met. The letter classifies Project Baccara as a "utility" under A.R.S. § 28-8461, which generally restricts utility siting near a military airport. Conditions include electromagnetic and radio-frequency interference shielding, no visible plumes affecting pilot visibility during the approximately 170 daily overflights, no on-site natural gas storage, sound attenuation, and federal reviews by the FAA, FCC, DoD Siting Clearinghouse, and CFIUS. Luke AFB "reserves the right to provide further comment."

The draft permit caps nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions at 89.9 tons per year, just 11.6 tons below the 100-ton threshold that triggers stricter federal oversight. Maricopa County already fails to meet federal air quality standards for both ozone and particulate matter. The permit allows propane as a backup fuel; if propane use reaches roughly 20% of operations during Arizona summer curtailments, the facility's own numbers show NOx crossing the major source threshold. The county's air quality department has determined that the data center's future diesel generator emissions count against the same cap. No tenant has been named and no data center emissions have been calculated.

A 45-page operational noise study was filed with the Military Compatibility Permit application in October 2025, prepared by a firm retained by the developer. It models only continuous full-load operation, not startup or shutdown events. The permit authorizes 3,600 startup and shutdown events per year at any hour, and this equipment class has published measurements exceeding 110 decibels unmitigated. The ambient baseline was measured over a single 24-hour period in August. Every methodological choice in the study moves the result in the same direction: quieter.

No thermal impact study exists in the permit record. Each of the 18 turbines exhausts at 850 degrees Fahrenheit continuously. ASU research has documented 3 to 4 degree ambient air temperature increases downwind of data centers at roughly 1/23rd the proposed capacity. Actual APS bills from a West Valley household show that a 7-degree increase in average temperature drove the demand charge from $41 to $92 in a single billing period. APS told regulators that data center load growth is driving the need for rate increases. Takanock told media the project will lower residential bills.

Takanock's own press release states the turbines will serve as "prime power until" a substation is completed, then become a "wholesale grid resource." The ACC approved the project on the basis that it would not burden ratepayers. The published plan describes a facility that transitions to grid-connected gas peakers whose costs flow to APS ratepayers. Takanock's stated model is to develop, build, and sell the site. The buyer inherits the facility. Takanock exits.

Takanock has described the facility's emissions as "well below" major source thresholds. The actual margin is 10.1 tons out of 100, before adding any data center emissions. The developer has claimed the project will lower utility bills. APS's own rate case filing says the opposite. Each claim has been checked against primary sources.