Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) announced Aug. 3 that Navy ships achieved more than $99 million in fuel cost avoidance during fiscal year (FY) 2009 as part of the Navy's Incentivized Energy Conservation (i-ENCON) Program.
The i-ENCON program is a "Meet the Fleet" initiative spearheaded by NAVSEA to reduce ships' energy consumption. Program sponsors conduct routine meetings with ship operators to review specific fuel-saving procedures and recommend quarterly awards for ships with the most fuel-efficient operations.
"These efforts increase fleet readiness by enabling Sailors at sea to train or deploy longer while spending the same amount of money on fuel," said Hasan Pehilvan, i-ENCON program manager.
One of the ways NAVSEA's i-ENCON measures fuel and cost avoidance is through underburn, the reported fuel rate for the quarter that's below the ship class' average burn rate. One hundred twenty Pacific and Atlantic Fleet ships reported an underburn for the third quarter fiscal year 2009.
"The cumulative underburn was 14.96 percent of fuel consumption for the past three quarters, which exceeded the ENCON goal of 10 percent by a wide margin," said Pehlivan. "This 14.96 percent underburn translates to a cost avoidance of 1,043,000 barrels of oil or $99 million."
This accomplishment increases fleet readiness by saving enough fuel to support 21 Arleigh Burke-class destroyers (at an average of 2,500 underway hours) per year.
This performance may be attributable to ships receiving $2 million in cash awards distributed in the fourth quarter of each fiscal year by Commander, Naval Surface Forces, according to Pehlivan.
i-ENCON rewards leading fuel conservers among underway surface ships with special recognition and cash incentives up to $67,000. In FY 2008, 148 ships received incentive cash awards. Award money is routed to each commanding officer's discretionary funds, which are often used to buy items like damage control gear or to augment the ship's welfare and recreation programs according to Pehilvan.
"The incentives are very important to i-ENCON's success," Pehlivan added. "It's a voluntary program that requires real commitment from ships' commanding officers, chief engineers and main propulsion assistants. I receive calls and emails from ships every day wanting to know how they can participate and improve their fuel performance." (NNS)
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