Phoenix, Arizona — Deluge Technologies, Inc. today announced the Cholla Water & Power Project, a bold and innovative infrastructure initiative designed to secure Arizona’s long-term water supply while delivering large-scale, carbon-free electricity. The Cholla Project is the brainchild of inventor Brian Hageman and his Arizona-based com
Phoenix, Arizona — Deluge Technologies, Inc. today announced the Cholla Water & Power Project, a bold and innovative infrastructure initiative designed to secure Arizona’s long-term water supply while delivering large-scale, carbon-free electricity. The Cholla Project is the brainchild of inventor Brian Hageman and his Arizona-based company, Deluge Technologies, Inc., and represents a new approach to solving two of the state’s most pressing challenges: water scarcity and clean energy reliability.
The Cholla Project proposes to transform the retired Cholla Power Plant site in northeastern Arizona into a modern water and energy hub. Brackish groundwater from the vast Four Corners underground aquifer would be purified at a new desalting plant modeled after the successful Yuma Desalting Plant. The desalinated water would then be conveyed to central Arizona through a closed pipeline system.
As the water flows downhill from the high elevations near Flagstaff toward the Phoenix metropolitan area, the pipeline itself becomes a source of clean power. Twelve inline hydroelectric generators installed along the pipeline would convert the energy of falling water into approximately 1,200 megawatts of carbon-free, 24/7 baseload electricity—enough to power hundreds of thousands of homes. Future expansion could triple that capacity.
Unlike conventional dams, the Cholla Project produces electricity without flooding land or altering natural river systems. Water remains fully enclosed within the pipeline while generating power, making the system both environmentally responsible and highly efficient.
Inventor Brian Hageman explained, “Arizona needs solutions that work at the scale of our challenges. The Cholla Project is about using proven engineering in a new way—turning water delivery itself into a source of clean, reliable power while creating a sustainable new water supply for future generations.”
The project is envisioned as a public infrastructure asset, with potential ownership, construction, and operation by federal agencies such as the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, in coordination with regional utilities. This approach mirrors how landmark water projects like Hoover Dam and the Central Arizona Project were developed for long-term public benefit.
Beyond water and electricity, the Cholla Project is expected to create thousands of high-quality jobs during construction, generate long-term operations employment, and provide lasting economic benefits to rural and urban communities across Arizona.
Deluge Technologies, Inc. is seeking public support and stakeholder endorsement as the project moves into detailed feasibility and environmental review. The company believes the Cholla Project can become a once-in-a-generation investment—delivering water security, clean energy, and economic resilience for Arizona and the Southwest.
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For more information about the Cholla Water & Power Project, please contact:
Deluge Technologies, Inc.
Brian Hageman, Inventor
480-203-6818
YUMA, ARIZONA -- Sitting idle for the last 32 years is the Yuma Desalting Plant (YDP), a brackish water desalination facility owned by the United States Bureau of Reclamation that can provide 70,000 acre-feet of drinking water per year. Deluge Technologies, Inc. (DTI) has proposed to “Repurpose” the YDP for use in supplying drinking water to Central Arizona. DTI has proposed to the Water Infrastructure Finance Authority of Arizona (WIFA), a project that will Repurpose and Retrofit the YDP, and build a water pipeline along I-8, from Yuma, through Gila Bend, to the Central Arizona Project in north Buckeye.
The YDP was built in 1992 to satisfy a treaty with Mexico, guaranteeing that the Colorado River will always supply water to Mexico, if the river flow dropped, the YDP would make up the difference. The YDP was never needed. The treaty agreement is outdated and flawed, and it is time to put this valuable desalting asset to good use. Mexico doesn’t need the Colorado River water, they have an unlimited supply of water from the Gulf of California, and with modern desalination technologies, can supply all the clean water necessary.
DTI plans to retrofit the YDP with the Deluge Hydraulic Engine technology, the new engine that runs on hot water, and use the Hydraulic Engine to pump water through the pipeline. The Hydraulic Engine is designed to operate using solar thermal or geothermal hot water as fuel, but the YDP will get hot water from capturing waste heat from the APS Yucca Power Plant across the street from the YDP. DTI also plans to add capacity to the YDP, doubling and tripling the drinking water output, by adding distillation desalination to the current reject water output form the YDP, and expanding the facility with a new underground brackish water source, currently untapped in Southwest Arizona.
“We expect the government to agree that the YDP should be put to use supplying water to Arizona” said Brian Hageman, CEO of DTI. “This valuable asset will become an integral part of Arizona’s water future”. Hageman continued, “Arizona doesn’t need to import water from Mexico, we have plenty of water in Yuma that can make the state self-sufficient.”
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