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Nellis AFB credits teamwork for largest PV system in U.S.
It was a big day for a very large solar project completed by one of the nation's largest green power consumers—the U.S. Air Force. In front of a crowd that included project partners; national, state and local officials; and members of the community, Nellis Air Force Base commissioned a 14-MW photovoltaic array on Dec. 17. Among the national VIPs were Nevada Governor Jim Gibbons; William C. Anderson, Assistant Secretary of the Air Force Installations, Environment & Logistics; and Paul Dickerson, Chief Operating Officer, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. "The best way to secure a healthy and prosperous economy is to develop our affordable, reliable local resources," said Governor Gibbons. "With these 14 megawatts, Nellis Air Force Base is leading the country in solar energy deployment, a move that is good for the environment and our nation's energy security alike." Governor Gibbons and Nellis Installation Commander Colonel Michael Bartley flipped the switch that connected the system to the grid. "Our base, and indeed, our entire nation will benefit from the predictable, secure supply of clean energy that this landmark power plant is now generating," Bartley stated in a press release. More power from tracking panelsNellis AFB will see the benefits quickly from the 14-megawatt, 70,000 solar-panel array covering 140 acres of desert outside of Las Vegas. At peak generation, the installation is expected to provide up to 25 percent of the base's annual power need and save about $83,000 a month in energy costs. Mounted on a single-axis tracking system, the solar panels follow the sun throughout the day producing up to 30 percent more electricity than fixed-position panels. The tracking component was not a part of the original request for proposals, recalled Base Energy Manager Michelle Price. "It specified the number of kilowatt-hours we expected, and the companies came back with designs. The original RFP called for an 18-MW array, but tracking maximized the generation from the smaller system. SunPower Corp. designed and built the ground-mounted array, part of which covers a retired landfill. The T20 trackers sit on top of the ground, so it was not necessary to pierce the landfill's cap to mount the units. "We were able to take a closed landfill and put it to use producing renewable energy, so we doubled the environmental benefit," Price said. MMA Renewable Ventures, LLC, owns and operates the system and sells the base the electricity it generates at a fixed rate. Nevada Power Company is also supporting the project by buying all the renewable energy credits from the system to help meet its renewable energy requirements. RPS pushes plan forwardSenate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada, who was unable to attend the commissioning ceremony, sent a statement praising the Air Force for its continued leadership on clean power. However, state leadership also played a critical role in bringing the massive Nellis system online, said Price. The idea of installing a PV system on the base had been floated as far back as 2004. "It was a good financial deal for the Air Force and for the contractors, but you have to have everybody's interest to get a system that size built," the energy manager said. Nevada's aggressive renewable portfolio standard, initially passed in 1997, finally brought all the necessary parties to the table. In 2005, the state Legislature revised the RPS to require investor-owned utilities to increase renewable energy sales by 3 percent every two years to achieve 20 percent of retail sales by 2015. "That's one of the strongest RPFs in the country," said Price. "The renewable energy credit market finally supported the project." Collaboration, not chance, succeedsThe size of the array precluded self-ownership, Price explained. "The base simply couldn't commit the personnel to maintain a system of that size." Still, a smaller project was never under consideration. "Nellis has the demand and it has the space," Price observed. "Col. Bartley explains it as running a utility for a town of 12,000 people." With a third party financing the array, however, there was no need to scale down. "Obviously, it's in MMA's best interest to sell as much power as possible, and the company gets the benefit of selling the RECs to Nevada Power, too," noted Price. Federal tax subsidies for solar power will help the investors recoup part of the project's cost of about $100 million. Nellis gets a 20-year fixed price from MMA on a significant portion of its energy needs, and Nevada Power is able to continue meeting RPS requirements. "I wouldn't say, 'the stars aligned' to make this project happen," Price asserted. "A lot of people worked very hard, and all the parties met each other part way." Nellis paves the wayHammering out a power purchase agreement was only the beginning of the hard work on the Nellis project. Solar construction, explains Price, is a fast process, and meeting all the requirements for building on a Federal installation takes time. "It was a challenge to make sure we dotted all our 'Is' and crossed all our 'Ts' and still kept things moving," she said. The construction began in June and was finished by December. "You have to be prepared to commit the manpower to keep up with the private builders," is Price's advice to Federal facilities that are considering such projects. "It may mean putting extra people on the job. And it's definitely a learning curve," she added. Other Federal facilities may have a shorter curve, thanks to Nellis Air Force Base. Assistant Secretary Anderson refers to the solar project as "the Nellis model," suggesting that the lessons can be used by any base for any renewable energy project. "It is replicable, and we are happy to make recommendations," agreed Price. |
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