July 25, 2014, WASHINGTON (NNS) – Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus announced today that Naval Facilities Engineering Command (NAVFAC) Pacific awarded a contract to Pacific Energy Solutions LLC, for the procurement of electricity produced from renewable energy generation systems.
Pacific Energy Solutions, based out of Boca Raton, Florida, will design, construct, own, operate and maintain various solar photovoltaic (PV) power generation systems that will provide renewable electricity to Navy and Marine Corps bases on Oahu, Hawaii. The total amount of power generated is anticipated to be about 17 megawatts of alternating current that will be shared between the Navy and Marine Corps.
“This is a large project with 10 roof top photovoltaic systems and four ground-based or elevated systems, built on three different bases,” said Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus. “In the first year alone we expect that these systems will save the taxpayers $1.6 million. That’s the equivalent of the electricity that can be generated from 54,000 barrels of oil here in Hawaii. It’s the amount of electricity needed to power more than 5,000 average homes here. And that’s just in the first year. This program will be generating those savings for decades. The work we are doing here will serve as a model for other projects around the world.”
The sites under this task order include: three roof tops and one ground mount location on Waipio Peninsula at Joint Base Pearl Harbor Hickam (JBPHH); six roof tops and two elevated PV structures at Marine Corps Base Hawaii; and one roof top and one elevated PV structure at Camp Smith, Aiea.
“This project signals the Navy’s largest photovoltaic array in the Pacific, and a significant step toward achieving our renewable energy goals,” said NAVFAC Pacific Commander Rear Adm. Bret Muilenburg. “Renewable energy initiatives are paramount to enabling the Navy and Marine Corps to improve energy security and efficiency ashore, and operational reach afloat. In addition, we are very proud to be partnering with Pacific Energy Solutions as we work to execute this substantial investment.”
Once constructed, the PV systems will deliver renewable energy for a term of 25 years. The construction of the PV systems is expected to take 12 months.