"The tender documents were posted this week, and they note that Defence is the biggest user of energy in the federal government, but is “uniquely” positioned to be able to integrate renewable energy on its vast “estate”.
The ADSCS site is among the first to make the transition, thanks to its excellent solar resources, but is clearly just a forerunner for other projects.
“It is Defence’s vision to be a leader in sustainable environmental management to support the capability of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) to defend Australia and its national interests,” the document says.
It notes that the solar array is intended to reduce costs – because it will be cheaper than importing grid power – and it says it will create “energy security” options in the future, and build the department’s expertise with renewable energy.
Indeed, it suggests other renewable energy projects are also planned, as the project will enable defence to use its knowledge to “replicate elsewhere” in the Estate."
