The Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) in partnership with Program Executive Office Ships (PEO Ships) awarded a contract to prototype and integrate a large energy storage system on a Navy platform.
December 13, 2024 (Mountain View, CA) — Emerging U.S. Navy platforms need increased power and energy production, storage, and distribution for a range of maritime applications and threats. These upgrades will require increases to on-board storage capacity and power conversion systems. To solve this challenge, PEO Ships has partnered with DIU on its Long Operation Combatant Naval Energy Storage System (LOC-NESS) project to procure a large form-factor maritime energy storage prototype for installation on a Navy combatant platform.
Following its competitive commercial solutions opening (CSO) evaluation process, DIU awarded a contract to Siemens Energy to develop a militarized solution based on its commercially available BlueVault Energy Storage System technology. The prototype will also help meet Department of Defense supply chain requirements. Siemens Energy will partner with another commercial vendor to ruggedize the battery cabinets and power management controls to meet shipboard specifications.
The technology solution aims to enable vessel engine efficiency, decrease fuel consumption and emissions, increase operational endurance, and reduce lifecycle cost to shipboard equipment. This modularized system is intended to be scalable and compatible with existing and future needs of Navy maritime platforms.
“DIU helped NAVSEA achieve critical mass in adding multi-megawatt hour capacity to a Navy platform,” said James Dempsey, Team Ships Director for Science & Technology. “This project propels us toward the next generation of power and energy systems for the Fleet.”
The LOC-NESS effort is supported by PEO Ships’ Science & Technology Directorate, Surface Warfare, Office of the Chief of Naval Operations (OPNAV) Naval Test and Evaluation Executive (N94), and Naval Surface Warfare Centers. Collectively, with DIU and PEO Ships, these organizations will provide rigorous assessments to optimize alignment with an evolving global defense landscape.