The utility announced that it will be developing a 15-megawatt solar array at Luke Air Force Base in Glendale, Arizona. The project will comprise 52,000 solar panels - and because those panels will be able to track the sun across the sky, they will produce 25 percent more energy than if they were stationary.
Going solar provides manifold benefits for the U.S. military, Air Force Lt. Col. John Thomas said. Luke Air Force Base, he noted, "will receive stable energy costs and increased energy independence associated with using reliable, emission-free solar power."
The array that APS is building will meet roughly 50 percent of the base's power needs; in the future, the military may try to go 100 percent renewable. It was estimated last year to be the world's largest consumer of petroleum products. And military officials announced in 2008 their intention to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 30 percent by 2015.
Projects like APS' help the armed forces reduce their carbon footprint and increase energy security - a true win-win.
