Fort Drum U.S. Army Base Goes Off-Grid with New Renewable Energy Supply

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--In an effort to increase energy security and control rising energy costs, the Army Initiative Task Force and the U.S. Army Military Base located in Fort Drum, New York, have plugged into a new renewable energy source that will give the base full electrical independence without having to rely on the national grid.

A new, $15 million substation interconnect was launched on October 10. It is connected to ReEnergy Black River LLC's (Fort Drum, New York), 60-megawatt (MW) biomass power plant, which is located inside the fence at the military base. ReEnergy Black River LLC is a subsidiary of ReEnergy Holdings LLC (Latham, New York).

The former coal-fired generating station was acquired by ReEnergy in December 2011. It was re-purposed and converted into a biomass power plant after undergoing $40 million worth of retrofit work, adjustments and improvements that essentially took the facility from old to new again.

The work required new fuel-handling and conveyor systems; modifications to the existing coal silos; converting the three old coal-fired boilers to handle biomass; and a total revamp of the plants control and air systems. The old Dresser steam turbine was deemed reliable, overhauled and re-purposed, saving millions on capital costs.

Construction of the conversion project was completed in just eight months, and the facility reached commercial operational status in August 2012. Each year, the plant burns some 600,000 tons of biomass material, including construction and demolition material, with some tire-derived fuel, and has a net output of 54 MW. The base will require some 20 to 28 megawatts of the plant's generating capacity, with the excess going to the grid.

With the recent completion and connection of the transmission lines and two new substations, ReEnergy Black River starts delivering renewable power to the base through a 20-year power purchase agreement with the post.

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