Distributed Energy Resources, Energy Efficiency, Industrial, Microgrids - July 17, 2017
Hanscom Air Force Base plans cogeneration plant
As part of a $43 million energy savings performance contract, Hanscom Air Force Base is installing an array of energy upgrades including a 4.6-MW cogeneration plant that will operate on a microgrid.
The distributed generation solution, along with other measures, is expected to create more than $94 million in guaranteed savings over the life of the project, according to a July 11 news release. The projects will improve energy resiliency at the base, supporting an Air Force initiative to provide mission assurance through energy assurance.
The broader contract, implemented by NORESCO, a part of UTC Climate, Controls and Security within United Technologies Corp., will “deliver significant utility cost savings and improve electrical and steam generating reliability” for the Massachusetts military base, according to the company’s news release.
The cogeneration plant is intended to provide emergency power to the base during utility outages. The air base’s central steam plant will be powered by the electric and steam output of the cogeneration plant in the even that grid power is not available.
The project also includes implementing LED lighting and replacing oil-fired boilers and burners with gas-fired equipment to reduce maintenance costs and provide a more reliable supply of lower cost fuel.
The project development is planned for an eleven-month timeline in order for the base to start benefiting from the system as soon as possible.
Cogeneration offers multiple benefits for facilities, including providing onsite electricity generation in case of grid outages and using existing industrial and commercial sites for incremental power generation rather than building new plants, according to a report done for the project by the Center for Climate and Energy Solutions. Cogeneration accounts for approximately 12% of total U.S. electricity generation, according to the report.
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