$24 Million Energy Security and Efficiency Project Announced at Fort Huachuca

Schneider Electric recently announced it is working on a $24 million project to improve energy security, resiliency and efficiency across Fort Huachuca’s facilities. The project will reduce energy costs at the U.S. Army installation by 23% annually, generating nearly $63 million in savings over 23 years.

Schneider Electric will install a four-megawatt (MW) Combined Heat & Power (CHP) plant driven by natural gas. CHP plants offer benefits by capturing heat that would otherwise be wasted from electricity generation and utilizing it to serve thermal loads. The project will serve as the foundation for a future microgrid solution and benefits the Army by reducing energy costs, progressing energy resiliency, diversifying the energy supply and supporting Army and federal energy policies. Over the term of the project, Schneider Electric will provide ongoing support, preventive maintenance and guarantee of performance.

The project is being financed through an energy savings performance contract (ESPC), where utility and operational savings are used to fund the improvements. Savings will come primarily from the CHP plant, as well as other measures to improve energy efficiency, including:

• Retrofitted interior and exterior lighting systems with LED technology and occupancy controls
• Programmable thermostats to allow for reduction of equipment run-time
• Demand controlled ventilation which enables micro-level control of equipment according to occupancy
• Variable frequency drives for HVAC/cooling tower fans and pumps for reduced air and water flow to match load

Construction will begin in January 2019 and be complete by early 2020.