Fort Hood breaks ground on 1 mil Kwh solar field

FORT HOOD, Texas -- The ground breaking ceremony for a solar project that will generate one million kilowatt-hours annually will be held at 11 a.m. Nov. 3 at the project site east of Liberty Village and south of Johnson Drive.

The array will consist of approximately 3,000 photovoltaic panels mounted to a steel frame that will span across a four acre site. The PV panels will generate enough electricity to power 60 homes. 

All family housing on Fort Hood is privatized; and Universal Services Fort Hood, Inc. is the owner and operator of the 300 single-family home community of Liberty Village. After project completion in March 2012, those Families will be fulfilling 20 percent of their electricity needs with renewable energy.

The Fort Hood Directorate of Public Works worked with U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Fort Worth District, to enable this opportunity. 

The contractor, USFH, is solely responsible for financing, constructing, operating and maintaining the PV array and equipment. Housing residents will consume the renewable energy without additional cost.

The Army has challenged all of its installations to pursue the Net Zero Energy goal, and this project is an opportunity that will bring green electricity to military Families on Fort Hood.