January 5: Kaptur Heralds Progress at 180th Fighter Wing's Solar Array
Kaptur said the project represents a pioneering effort to make U.S. military bases energy independent. The construction efforts outlined today will ultimately produce more than one megawatt of power, or more than a third of the base’s total requirement of electricity.
“Even on an overcast day such as today, this solar energy plant is doing yeoman’s work producing power for the 180th,” Kaptur said. She said the hardware for the array is now 100 percent locally acquired with the addition of a locally manufactured inverter, introduced recently by Toledo-based Nextronex.
Almost a dozen northwest Ohio companies are involved in building the solar plant, which Kaptur initiated from her position on the House Appropriations defense subcommittee. She has directed more than $9 million for the solar field at the 180th and a sister field that is underway at Camp Perry in Ottawa County.
“Imported energy is America’s chief strategic vulnerability,” Kaptur said.
“We are trying to nation’s defense to an energy independent posture.” Kaptur said the 180th Fighter Wing base “serves as a 21st Century prototype, not just for Ohio, but for the entire nation. Our region, because of our advanced energy technologies, will help lead America to a new day when energy freedom will be restored. Others may talk about restoring America’s energy independence. Here in northern Ohio, we are already leading America forward.”
Kaptur noted that The Economist has identified Toledo as one of the three most significant solar energy research communities in the world.
“This base clearly captures that lead in a way that the public will come to understand,” Kaptur said. The solar field concept, she said, provides a more cost effective technology than other applications, such as a project underway in Nevada.
She said the initiatives at the 180th and at Camp Perry complement her efforts to help build an alternative energy industry in Northern Ohio around the hub of the Center for Solar Energy and Hydrogen at the University of Toledo.
“We’re creating the economy of the future thanks to a robust federal commitment, combined with local participation from many quarters,” she said. “There’s no higher priority than making our nation energy independent and positioning Northern Ohio as a leader in that endeavor. We have shown that can lower our operating costs and improve our security at the same time. We intend to show the rest of America the way to declaring independence from unstable foreign energy sources.”
The 180th Air Wing at Toledo Express Airport has been ranked as an Excellent unit in the Air Force ranking system and is slated to receive the Joint Strike Fighter, the successor aircraft to the current F-16s that are being flown.
Energy Resources
A guide to installing solar energy
Alternative energy tax credits for which you may be eligible
Funding opportunities from the The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act Related to Energy
Read more about solar energy development in Northern Ohio here.