Norfolk Naval Shipyard (NNSY) is a 1,275 acre industrial facility in Portsmouth, VA.
NNSY has been in continuous operation since 1767, when it was the Gosport Navy Yard.
NNSY houses five drydocks and numerous in-water berths that can accommodate boats and ships from the size of a patrol craft to an aircraft carrier.
Photo credit (left): Don S. Montgomery, USN(ret), 6 October 1983
NNSY also hosts a number of large production halls that house facilities supporting industrial processes from laser ablation to foundry work.
A lot of energy intensive work is conducted at NNSY, all supplied by the commercial electric grid owned by Dominion Power.
Service steam is provided by the Wheelabrator facility, a trash-to-energy plant, adjacent to the shipyard.
Photo credit (right): Shayne Hensley, NAVSEA, n.d.
Potential Solar Footprint
- 1- Warehouse – 1.4 MW
- 2- Bldg 510 – 1.4 MW
- 3- Bldg 298 - 748 kW
- 4- Bldg 369 – 1.4 MW
- 5- Refueling Bldg – 868 kW
- 6- Shop 72 & 38 – 3.6 MW
- 7- Foundry – 650 kW
- 8- Warehouse – 591 kW
- 9- Paint Shop – 368 kW
Potential Solar Footprint (cont'd)
- 10- Warehouse - 1.75 MW
- 11- Warehouse - 1.87 MW
- 12- Barracks – 443 kW
- 13- Gym – 380 kW
- 14- NGIS – 420 kW
- 15- Covered Storage – 210 kW
- 16- Warehouse & RadCon Training – 2.27 MW
- 17- Warehouse – 415 kW
- 18- Training Building (still under construction) – 1.3 MW
- 19- Parking Lot Awning, 50 Spots 164 kW
Potential Solar Footprint (cont'd)
- 20- Bldg 1500 – 495 kW
- 21- Bldg 1500 Annex – 182 kW
- 22- Bldg 202 – 7.6 MW
- 23- DD3 Production Hall – 1.2 MW
- 24- Warehouse – 550 kW
- 25- Firestation – 1.25 MW
- 26- Mini NEX & Subway – 131 kW
- 27- Bldg 1505 – 620 kW
- 28- Submarine Production Hall – 873 kW
- 29- Warehouse – 219 kW
- 30- Warehouse & Offices – 231 kW
- 31- Parking Lot Awning – Alternate – 50 Spots – 155 kW
Proposed Total System Size: 33.4MW
- Capacity factor will reflect the intermittency of solar energy
- Installation will need to meet the Unified Facilities Criteria for roof mounted PV cells.
- PV supports must “be permanently affixed stanchions” “anchored to the building structure”
- Analysis must be conducted to ensure the roof structure can handle the increased load
- Roof drainage must be maintained
- Sufficient service life of the existing roofing system must remain (~10 years), otherwise roof must be replaced as well. (UFC 3-110-03, 2020)
Electric Vehicle Charging
- Currently NNSY has 2 charging spots for privately owned vehicles
- Partially powered by a parking lot canopy (visible near proposed solar array 31)
- Approximately 15 people use a time-sharing system to charge at the existing plugs
- Numerous electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles are parking around the shipyard without power availability
- Propose 50 spots with a canopy array as a pilot program for use with POVs
- The Federal Government is also considering a transition to a largely EV vehicle fleet. Solar arrays for charging infrastructure would be a good option to consider
- Photo credit (background): Dominion Power (2020)
Regulatory Picture
April 2020 – Virginia Clean Economy Act
- Mandates a Renewable Portfolio Standard for all energy in Virginia
- Dominion (Hampton Roads Area) and Appalachian Power mandated to use 75% of allotted RECs from RPS sources native to Virginia
- Current REC prices are around $20 per MW-h for the region
- Government can’t benefit directly from RECs, works better under a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) or other agreement with a contractor, since both entities would receive the benefit.
- 10% tax credit is available through an Investment Tax Credit for companies operating under a PPA with the Federal Government
10 United States Code
- Section 2922a states that the DoD can enter into contracts up to 30 years in length for the “provision and operation of energy production facilities on real property under the Secretary’s jurisdiction”
- Section 2915 states that “Use of renewable forms of energy shall be encouraged as a source of energy for military” facilities
The Path Forward
- Issue a “Request For Interest” document through NAVFAC contracting to solicit interest from industry in providing rooftop solar power service to NNSY
- PPA is a possible path that will get panels installed
References
- Dominion Power (2020). Schedule 10 Data. Retrieved from https://www.dominionenergy.com/virginia/rates-and-tariffs/schedule-10-data
- Dominion Power (2020). Smart Charging Infrastructure Pilot Program. Retrieved from https://www.dominionenergy.com/-/media/pdfs/virginia/save- energy/scip-faqs.pdf
- National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) (2021). PVWatts Calculator. Retrieved from https://pvwatts.nrel.gov/
- Unified Facilities Criteria (UFC) (2020). Roofing. UFC 3-110-03, Change 5, 12 June 2020.
- United States Code, 2006 Edition, Supplement 4, Title 10 – ARMED FORCES, Public Law No. 109-364 §2851(b)(2) (2006). Retrieved from https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCODE-2010-title10/pdf/USCODE-2010- title10-subtitleA-partIV-chap173-subchapII-sec2922a.pdf
- United States Code, 2006 Edition, Supplement 4, Title 10 – ARMED FORCES, Public Law No. 111–383, §2832(b)(4) (2011). Retrieved from https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/USCODE-2010-title10/USCODE-2010-title10- subtitleA-partIV-chap173-subchapI-sec2915
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