WIFA seeking teams with capacity to develop water importation projects through competitive solicitation

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WIFA SEEKING TEAMS WITH CAPACITY TO DEVELOP WATER IMPORTATION PROJECTS THROUGH COMPETITIVE SOLICITATION

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

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[PHOENIX, November 20, 2024] – The Water Infrastructure Finance Authority of Arizona (WIFA) has published a solicitation seeking qualified project teams to develop water importation projects.

The solicitation marks the first phase of project development that WIFA will undertake to identify, evaluate, and develop projects to bring new, renewable water supplies into the state. Through this competitive procurement process, WIFA will solicit responses from fully formed teams of project proposers who have demonstrated experience in engineering, constructing, operating, maintaining, and financing water augmentation projects. WIFA will evaluate the qualifications of project proposers through their answers to detailed questions and criteria contained in the solicitation. Qualified respondents will be selected by WIFA to further develop their project ideas, providing WIFA with additional information necessary to evaluate the viability of each proposal.

Entities with an interest in this process or future phases of project development are encouraged to participate in the solicitation. To access the solicitation and other important information, visit ltwaf.azwifa.gov.

WIFA’s long-term augmentation mission was established in 2022 when the Arizona Legislature determined that a comprehensive water strategy, including augmentation of existing water resources with renewable supplies, was necessary to protect Arizona’s current and future residents, the economy, and the environment. The solicitation is an important step toward fulfilling WIFA’s statutory directive to meet Arizona’s future water needs through water augmentation.

WIFA’s Long-Term Augmentation Committee, a subset of WIFA’s Board of Directors, worked through the Spring and Summer to draft the solicitation. The Committee’s chairman, Ted Cooke, emphasized the importance of the solicitation as a sign of WIFA’s thoughtful and professional approach to selecting water augmentation projects. “I am extremely proud of the work we have done to prove that WIFA is a serious player in water infrastructure development,” Cooke said. “We have designed this competitive project development process to attract extremely capable teams with outside-the-box ideas for bringing water to Arizona and give WIFA the opportunity to publicly and transparently vet those projects, ensuring that we select the right one for our state.”

“WIFA’s augmentation mission is a quintessential example of how Arizona is consistently and effectively working toward a secure, resilient, and sustainable water future,” said WIFA Board Chairman Jonathan Lines. “Arizona has long been serious about water. Similarly, WIFA takes seriously its mission to find new water resources so that our state can continue to grow and thrive. I

look forward to seeing the responses to this solicitation and learning more about what will be the next major milestone in Arizona’s water stewardship story.”  

About WIFA

WIFA is a state agency dedicated to ensuring the sustainability of Arizona's present and future water supply through financial investments in effective augmentation, conservation, reuse, and water quality. WIFA is Arizona's administrator of the Clean Water and Drinking Water State Revolving Funds (CWSRF and DWSRF), providing low-interest loans and technical assistance to water and clean water infrastructure projects, as well as three new funds aimed at conserving water and identifying new supplies. Over the last 30 years, WIFA has proudly invested almost $3 billion in communities throughout Arizona driving sustainable solutions and helping to secure Arizona’s water future. 

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WIFA Initiates Competitive Development Process to Transform Arizona's Water Solutions

News and Updates

WIFA Initiates Competitive Development Process to Transform Arizona's Water Solutions

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

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[PHOENIX, October 31, 2024] – The Arizona Water Infrastructure Finance Authority (WIFA) has initiated a flexible, multi-phase pathway to securing new, long-term sources of water for the thriving state.

WIFA officials will use a competitive process supported by Arizona’s Long-term Water Augmentation Fund (LTWAF) to identify, vet, and select partners and projects that will provide Arizona with new sources of water. The competitive project development approach will be a multi-phase process consistent with the State’s established procurement rules and with legislation defining WIFA’s roles and authorities.

The first phase will begin in late 2024 when WIFA issues a competitive solicitation. Through the solicitation, WIFA will seek responses from fully formed teams of project proposers with demonstrated experience in engineering, constructing, operating, maintaining, and financing water augmentation projects. WIFA will evaluate the qualifications of project proposers through their answers to detailed questions and criteria contained in the solicitation. WIFA will then contract with successful proposers to further develop their projects, directing them to provide WIFA with additional information necessary to evaluate the viability of each proposal. Projects remaining after this analysis may enter the final phases of the process, through which WIFA will address final project designs, permitting, and implementation.

WIFA’s Long-Term Augmentation Committee, a subset of WIFA’s Board of Directors, worked through the Spring and Summer to draft the initial solicitation. At a meeting on October 30, the committee recommended approval of the solicitation document. The full Board will vote on whether to accept the committee’s recommendation at its next meeting on November 20.

“This transparent, multi-phase process maximizes WIFA’s ability to capitalize on private-sector innovation, laying the foundation for successful public-private partnerships to bring secure, renewable water sources to Arizona,” said Chuck Podolak, WIFA Executive Director.

Entities with an interest in this process or future phases of project development are encouraged to participate in the solicitation.

The LTWAF was established by the Arizona State Legislature in 2022 to help finance water supply development. By statute, at least 75 percent of the funds must be used for opportunities that import water through partnerships from outside the state, and up to 25 percent of the funds may be available for in-state augmentation projects.

For more on the LTWAF and the augmentation development process, visit ltwaf.azwifa.gov.

About WIFA
WIFA is a state agency dedicated to ensuring the sustainability of Arizona's present and future water supply through financial investments in effective augmentation, conservation, reuse, and water quality. WIFA is Arizona's administrator of the Clean Water and Drinking Water State Revolving Funds (CWSRF and DWSRF), providing low-interest loans and technical assistance to water and clean water infrastructure projects, as well as three new funds aimed at conserving water and identifying new supplies. Over the last 30 years, WIFA has proudly invested almost $3 billion in communities throughout Arizona driving sustainable solutions and helping to secure Arizona’s water future.
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Template: Press Release

News and Updates

WIFA Invests $15 Million in Water Conservation

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

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[PAYSON, June 21, 2023] –The Water Infrastructure Finance Authority (WIFA) Board of Directors today voted to invest $15 million in water conservation for communities across Arizona.  

The eight grants approved today will fund programs or projects in seven Arizona counties. The grant activities include installation of advanced water meters, turf removal and replacement, and lining or piping irrigation ditches. Applicants estimate that these projects will save nearly 13,000 acre-feet of water per year.

The Water Conservation Grant Fund (WCGF) was created in 2022 with $200 million for grants to fund programs and projects that reduce water use in Arizona communities. In the first round of solicitations for the WCGF, WIFA received more than 65 applications requesting over $100 million in projects. WIFA will evaluate each of these proposals over the coming months. A second round of solicitations is currently open and will close on June 30, 2023.

Moreover, earlier this week, Governor Hobbs signed SB1390 which expanded WCGF eligibility to include tribal entities and private water systems. This strengthens WIFA’s ability to support conservation across the state, consistent with the original intent of the fund. WIFA is excited to see applications from newly eligible entities in current and future rounds of solicitations.  

About WIFA

WIFA is a state agency dedicated to ensuring the sustainability of Arizona's present and future water supply through financial investments in effective augmentation, conservation, reuse, and water quality. WIFA is Arizona's administrator of the Clean Water and Drinking Water State Revolving Funds (CWSRF and DWSRF), providing low-interest loans and technical assistance to water and clean water infrastructure projects, as well as three new funds aimed at conserving water and identifying new supplies. Over the last 30 years, WIFA has proudly invested almost $3 billion in communities throughout Arizona driving sustainable solutions and helping to secure Arizona’s water future. 

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