U.S. Navy Awards Task Order to Ameresco for Energy Resiliency Project at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard

Energy savings performance contract will build upon existing assets to improve energy efficiency and resiliency at naval shipyard 

FRAMINGHAM, MASS. – February 12, 2020 – Ameresco, Inc., (NYSE: AMRC), a leading energy efficiency and renewable energy company, today announced that the U.S. Navy has awarded its Federal Solutions team a task order to implement a $58 million energy resiliency project at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard (PNSY) in Kittery, Maine. This project expands on the long-term partnership between Ameresco’s Federal Solutions team and the U.S. Navy at PNSY. This energy savings performance contract (ESPC) features on-site generation, battery storage, and microgrid controls to address the Navy’s priority of maximizing energy security at the Shipyard while reducing energy costs. Because ESPCs leverage the guaranteed savings the projects generate to secure third-party financing, the Navy will not have to contribute up-front funding during the project’s implementation phase.

Ameresco will expand on PNSY’s existing 14 MW power plant, by installing a new 7.5 MW combined heat and power (CHP) plant. These new assets will build upon existing infrastructure to provide an extraordinary level of redundancy for mission-critical loads within an expanded microgrid with intelligent controls and fast load shed capability. Ameresco installed the existing microgrid control system in 2015 as part of a Department of Defense (DoD) grant project administered under the DoD’s Environmental Security Technology Certification Program (ESTCP).

Ameresco is also deploying a 1.0 MW/2.0 MWh battery energy storage system and upgrading the site’s electrical distribution system. The microgrid control system will continuously monitor and intelligently dispatch on-site generation assets and imported power supporting the Shipyard’s critical missions. The new CHP plant will also provide substantial resiliency with respect to the site’s steam requirements, particularly during the severe winter weather typical of the region. Another component of the project involves the installation of a new 800 HP steam-turbine driven air compressor that will serve the Shipyard’s extensive industrial compressed air loads utilizing “free” cogenerated steam as opposed to grid purchased electricity. This will dovetail with the expanded onsite generation to enhance the efficiency and resiliency of the site’s industrial processes. All measures are designed to operate in compliance with all relevant Department of Defense and Navy cybersecurity requirements.

“By extending our partnership with PNSY to increase on-site generation, deploy energy storage, and integrate a broad range of generation assets into a fully independent microgrid, we will ensure that the Shipyard is able to continue providing high-quality service to Navy’s fleet,” said Nicole Bulgarino, Executive Vice President and General Manager of Federal Solutions at Ameresco. “This project builds on our decades-long partnership with PNSY to assure the Shipyard’s vital national security mission, even in the event of a prolonged loss of utility.”

After construction is completed in 2022, Ameresco will operate and maintain ESPC-delivered systems until January 2044. The ESPC will generate more than $175 million in guaranteed cost savings over the 22-year performance period following construction.

About Portsmouth Naval Shipyard

Portsmouth Naval Shipyard (PNSY) is one of four remaining naval shipyards in the nation. Centrally located about 50 miles from Boston, Massachusetts, Portland, Maine and Manchester, New Hampshire, at the southernmost tip of Maine, the shipyard fully encompasses Seavey Island that sits at the mouth of the Piscataqua River. This federally-owned island is across the harbor from Portsmouth, New Hampshire, with access to the mainland by two bridges that connect to Kittery, Maine. PNSY encompasses over 297 acres including the main base and a family housing site off base in Kittery, Maine. For more information, visit http://www.navsea.navy.mil/Home/Shipyards/Portsmouth. 

About Ameresco, Inc.

Founded in 2000, Ameresco, Inc. (NYSE:AMRC) is a leading independent provider of comprehensive services, energy efficiency, infrastructure upgrades, asset sustainability and renewable energy solutions for businesses and organizations throughout North America and Europe. Ameresco’s sustainability services include upgrades to a facility’s energy infrastructure and the development, construction and operation of renewable energy plants. Ameresco has successfully completed energy saving, environmentally responsible projects with Federal, state and local governments, healthcare and educational institutions, housing authorities, and commercial and industrial customers. With its corporate headquarters in Framingham, MA, Ameresco has more than 1,000 employees providing local expertise in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. For more information, visit www.ameresco.com.

The announcement of a customer’s entry into a project contract is not necessarily indicative of the timing or amount of revenue from such contract, of the company’s overall revenue for any particular period or of trends in the company’s overall total project backlog. This project was included in our previously reported awarded backlog as of September 30, 2019.

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