A military installation in Upstate New York is now being powered by its own biomass power plant. This article from the Watertown Daily Times says Fort Drum is now officially connected to its on-post ReEnergy biomass plant.
“We’re the only post in the Army that’s self-reliant for energy right now,” Maj. Gen. Jeffrey L. Bannister, the 10th Mountain Division’s commander, said during a media round-table on post Thursday.
He noted the plant was one area in which the post relied on the community to be more cost-efficient.
The direct connection work, ensuring that all power systems interacted correctly, was estimated to cost about $12 million. ReEnergy CEO Larry D. Richardson said the project was a complex effort that required coordination among the Army, the post, National Grid and its own engineers.
“This is not a typical project that’s done every day,” Mr. Richardson said.
He said the direct connection from the plant to the post’s substation was a milestone for the company.
A year ago, the military inked a 20-year, nearly $300 million contract with ReEnergy, the largest such deal in Army history. The biomass plant replaced a coal-fired plant on the post.