ABERDEEN, Md. — The U.S. Army has debuted a new combined heat and power (CHP) plant at Aberdeen Proving Ground in Aberdeen, Maryland. This new CHP plant is the first of its kind at an Army installation, and represents an innovative public-private partnership between the U.S. Army Materiel Command, U.S. Army Installation Management Command, Baltimore Gas and Electric, and Johnson Controls. The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Advanced Manufacturing Office (AMO) provided technical assistance on several levels throughout the project’s development.

CHP deployment is an efficient and clean approach to generating on-site electric power and useful thermal energy from a single source. The Aberdeen Proving Ground plant is expected to save almost $25 million over the next five years and generate enough electricity to cover about half of the facility’s energy requirements. It will also meet approximately 80 percent of the facility’s steam needs. This energy is provided by converting waste heat into power, which increases the energy efficiency of the plant and reduces emissions. A CHP system provides enhanced energy security by offering an on-site source of energy that isn’t subject to the market cost of electricity or supply disruptions. It also diversifies the energy supply by enabling integration of both fossil-based and renewable fuels.