TVA Works to Help Make Air Force Base More Energy-Efficient
March 11, 2003
ARNOLD AIR FORCE BASE, Tenn. — Continuing a 52-year partnership, TVA and Arnold Engineering Development Center are undertaking projects that will help AEDC use energy more efficiently and save money on power costs.
As the world’s largest flight simulation test facility and one of two jet engine test facilities in the world, AEDC has tested virtually every high performance aerospace system that the Department of Defense has developed since the mid-1950s. AEDC is also one of TVA’s largest directly served customers, using the same amount of electricity as about 23,000 homes in the Tennessee Valley.
“We recognize that when we help our customers meet their bottom line, everyone benefits—the customer, TVA, and the Valley economy,” said TVA Director Bill Baxter.
As a part of a lighting retrofit project, TVA energy services employees installed new, efficient lighting in more than 214 buildings on the base. The project resulted in a savings of about $195,000 in FY 2002 to AEDC.
TVA energy services personnel also worked with AEDC to install a new steam-distribution system to help reduce the loss of steam between boilers and the facilities where jet engines are tested. The shallow trench system reduces the steam distribution losses by more than 15 percent, which in turn reduces natural gas costs by $700,000 to $800,000 per year.
This month TVA also installed an aboveground distribution system. The project will result in a much more efficient way to distribute steam to the test facility.
“By saving AEDC money, TVA is helping us reinvest our money where it counts,” said Colonel David J. Eichhorn, commander of the Air Force Materiel Command’s Arnold Engineering Development Center. “That means more money for testing, which helps improve our U.S. military forces, making them stronger and more effective to fight the war on terrorism.”
In October, AEDC signed a new 10-year power contract with TVA that provides incentives to operate in off-peak times. The new pricing option gives large power customers an opportunity to schedule production, which can effectively lower the average cost of power while benefiting the TVA system by shifting loads off TVA’s peak periods.
“AEDC needed a contract tailored to meet its operations,” Baxter said. “We are committed to working with all of our customers to help them meet their needs. To be a player in a competitive marketplace, we recognized that we need to earn our customers’ business.”
TVA is the nation’s largest public power producer, and is self-financed. TVA provides power to large industries and 158 power distributors that serve 8.3 million consumers in seven southeastern states.
Media Contact:
Lucha Ramey, Knoxville (865-632-8385) or TVA News Bureau, Knoxville (865-632-6000)
