Terawatt looking to create a buzz in Scottsdale

By Tom Scanlon for the Scottsdale Progress

The clear, main-event attraction of the Tuesday, June 9, Scottsdale City Council meeting was the city’s proposed budget, a $2.1 billion heavyweight.

A prelim on the agenda was a public hearing on proposed property taxes – like the budget up for City Council approval.

There was also a crowded undercard of nearly two dozen items on the “consent agenda.” Backers of the requests for liquor licenses, plumbing contracts, Tourism Event funding programs and more will be quietly whistling in the back of the room, hoping their projects are approved without being called into question.

One consent agenda item is nothing if not buzzworthy:

Terawatt.

Named after the unit of power equal to 1 trillion watts of power, this is a company looking to provide storage for non-combustion cars.

Not only that: “autonomous electric vehicle (EV) fleets.”

The location is 7018 E. Osborn Road, west of 70th Street in Old Town.

The current use is an ordinary parking lot.

The request is for something extraordinary.

As Michele Hammond of Berry Riddell told the Planning Commission at its May 13 meeting, “We are requesting a conditional use permit to allow for vehicle storage for electric vehicle fleet charging of autonomous passenger vehicles. 

“Terawatt,” she continued, “is a company that owns, develops, operates commercial electric vehicle charging sites – throughout the country. They’ve been well recognized for bringing this type of charging to sustainable use throughout the nation.”

According to a company press release, “Terawatt is the only player in the market that owns and operates every layer of the autonomous vehicle (AV) and electric vehicle (EV) fleet infrastructure stack, delivering the critical infrastructure and operations required for these fleets to scale.”

In a nutshell: “The company acquires, develops, and operates purpose-built charging depots for autonomous vehicle and commercial electric fleets.”

Those in a city with a growing – if not ubiquitous – Waymo fleet with “robocar paranoia” might shudder at the thought of this business, which Hammond wholeheartedly defended.

“Autonomous vehicles are significantly safer than human-operated vehicles,” she told the Planning Commission. “I can attest to this, as someone who has a son that just turned 16. Trust me, you much preferred him in his Waymo than you do him driving.”

Hammond stressed data in the Phoenix metropolitan area shows with over 20.8 million miles driven, “autonomous vehicles have had 81% fewer deployment crashes, 78% fewer injury crashes than human drivers. 

“They’re significantly safer for pedestrians and bicyclists, (with) 92% fewer accidents for pedestrians, 85% fewer with bicyclists.”

That’s all fine and good, Barney Gonzales said – but the Planning commissioner wanted to know about electric vehicle fires.

Responding to the commissioner’s questions, Scottsdale Assistant Fire Chief Clint Steeves said, “Scottsdale Fire Department is highly trained when it comes to EV vehicles, particularly lithium. 

“We were lucky enough that Tesla chose us as one of their cities to provide training. We’re one of three selected cities in the United States (for) one week-long training for our entire fire department on emergency response to EV vehicles.”

Steeves said SFD has experience and knowledge “how we respond to EV vehicles, because they are unique hazards with the lithium battery package that is underneath … once ignition starts on the (EV), they can be difficult to put out.”

Gonzales pressed Steeves on a worst-case scenario:

“How many instances have you in Scottsdale put out with multiple electric vehicle fires at one time?”

Steeves said he would have to research that.

When it came time for the seven commissioners to vote, Gonzales said he wanted to explain his decision.

“I like the application,” he said. “It looks forward, it’s a complete good use of the zoning.

“But unfortunately I have too many unanswered questions, and therefore I say no.”

The other six Planning commissioners gave Terawatt the thumbs up, sending the buzzy request to City Council.