Ingredients for a Microgrid at U.S. Department of Defense Installations [Technology Leaders

Abstract

The U.S. Department of the Navy has vital installations with energy security gaps that can put the installation?s essential missions at risk. Military bases that have electrical reliability and resiliency issues make it challenging to consistently conduct U.S. Navy and Marine Corps operations, training, and testing of weapon systems. The U.S. Department of Defense?s budget must first prioritize resources to support the procurement of weapon systems and service warfare capabilities per the National Defense Strategy. This prioritization often results in a lack of budget resources for installation electrical infrastructure improvements. To deal with this challenge, the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps developed a technical and financial recipe for establishing microgrids that close energy security gaps-without cost to the taxpayer-and greatly reduce risks to installation mission accomplishment. This article discusses the key ingredients of that recipe.