Defence Construction Canada (DCC) is on track to help the Department of National Defence (DND) achieve impressive reductions in energy use and greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) at CFB Kingston.
Under an energy performance contract, a variety of energy retrofits and upgrades have been designed and installed at the base. These will significantly reduce energy use and GHG emissions from the more than 100 buildings affected. The savings in energy costs will be used to pay for the project costs over a 15-year period.
The project is expected to enter the verification phase this fall, when the energy savings will be monitored and the contractor paid based on energy performance.
“The greatest savings will come from ‘peak shaving’,” said Paula Simpson, DCC Coordinator, Construction Services at CFB Kingston. That refers to reducing how much power the base draws from the provincial grid at peak periods, when power is most expensive, and replacing it with less expensive power.
“In periods of peak demand, the base will generate its own power,” she explained.
Some 3,000 kW of that on-site power will come from a natural gas generator. Arrays of solar panels and lithium-ion battery energy storage systems (the size of a shipping container) will be able to contribute even more at peak.
As well, building controls have been optimized and lighting converted to LED. HVAC systems have been replaced, and central heating systems upgraded.
Upon completion, the project should achieve annual savings of more than $7 million for DND and reduce GHG emissions at the base by 33%.
