Marine Corps Recruit Depot to Save $6.9 Million Annually with Distributed Energy

by | Jun 20, 2019

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Marine Corps Recruit Depot to Save $6.9 Million Annually with Distributed Energy

(Photo: A new central plant with a microgrid at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot on Parris Island. Credit: Ameresco)

A 10 megawatt distributed energy project just completed for the United States Marine Corps Recruit Depot (MCRD) on Parris Island in South Carolina is expected to save $6.9 million in annual utility and operational costs, reduce utility energy demand by 75%, and cut water consumption by 25%, according to energy company Ameresco.

In 2015, the Marine Corps training facility for around 20,000 recruits tapped Ameresco to deploy 3.5 MW of combined heat and power (CHP) as well as 5.5 MW of solar photovoltaic generation assets. The $91 million project would also integrate those assets with a 4.0 MW / 8 MWH battery energy storage system and an intelligent microgrid control system capable of fast load shedding, the company said.

“The distributed generation, energy storage, and secure microgrid controls that Ameresco designed and installed there have dramatically enhanced the site’s resilience, giving the installation the capacity to sustain its critical training operations when the local grid goes down,” according to the company.

To save utility and operational costs, lower utility energy demand, and reduce water consumption, Ameresco reports that the company optimized utility consumption at facilities across the 8,000-acre installation with demand reduction measures.

MCRD Parris Island’s energy savings performance contract with Ameresco has a 22-year performance period. After the contract was initiated in 2015, the energy company says it worked with project stakeholders to replace an aging central plant with a 3.5 megawatt combined heat and power plant and three diesel generators for backup generation.

In addition, nearly 20,000 solar modules add 5.5 MW of power generation and the solar carports provide shelter for more than 500 parking spaces.

“Resiliency at MCRD Parris Island means providing uninterruptible power in support of critical training operations,” said Nicole Bulgarino, executive vice president at Ameresco. “Distributed generation systems like the comprehensive solution we have just built there deliver a layered defense against threats to the power supply.”

(Photo: A new central plant with a microgrid at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot on Parris Island. Credit: Ameresco)

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