The modernization project will ad capacity and fault tolerance to power and water infrastructure that supports the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard’s mission to overhaul, repair and modernize the Navy’s nuclear-powered submarines.
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Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery will see $654.3 million in utility infrastructure upgrades thanks to an award by Norfolk, Va.-based Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command Atlantic.
The military construction contract will modernize aging power and water infrastructure that supports the shipyard’s mission to overhaul, repair and modernize the Navy’s nuclear-powered attack submarines. The improvements are designed to increase utility reliability, resilience and capacity while reducing the risk of operational downtime.
“Maintaining nuclear support facilities and executing complex dry dock operations requires redundant, high-capacity power and water utilities to ensure environmental safety, protect assets and prevent failures,” said Russ Gagner, director of the shipyard’s infrastructure optimization program.
Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command is the Navy’s facilities and expeditionary systems command, delivering planning, design, construction, sustainment and environmental services.
Division of labor
The on-base construction component of the contract, awarded to 1080 Constructors, a federal contracting company in Omaha, Neb., includes upgrades and modifications to the yard’s power distribution system, energy storage and on-site generation to increase electrical capacity, capability and resilience; substation renovation; installation of natural gas generators; installation of new water mains; integration of a water storage tank; and upgrades to the water pump station and auxiliary seawater system.
The project includes off-base water system improvements through Kittery Water District and off-base electrical system improvements through Central Maine Power.
The project adds capacity and fault tolerance to the yard’s infrastructure.
Sub delivery
In separate news, the yard last week completed a technology upgrade on Virginia-class nuclear-powered attack submarine USS North Dakota (SSN 784) and delivered it back to the fleet ahead of schedule.
The project, a months-long partnership between the shipyard’s civilian workforce, led by Capt. Jesse Nice, and the sub’s crew, integrated maritime technologies designed to enhance operational readiness. The crew navigated several first-time technical alterations and testing that took place at a historically rapid pace, according to a press release.
