The Pentagon will install solar panels on its rooftop, part of a $250 million plan by the Biden administration to promote net-zero projects at government facilities.

The upgrade is part of a $104 million grant for 31 government buildings to promote energy conservation measures.  

In addition to on-site solar panels, the Pentagon will receive a heat recovery pump system and battery energy storage. 

This is the latest step in the Biden administration’s “Investing in America” agenda.

The project aims to “reestablish the Federal Government as a sustainability leader,” according to the Department of Energy. Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleen Hicks said these new installations will not only make the Defense Department “more resilient” by “better securing our critical infrastructure,” but it is also a win-win for “warfighters and taxpayers alike.”

Brendan Owens, assistant secretary of defense for energy, said the new panels would protect the Pentagon’s energy security in the event of a cyberattack or other outage.

The Energy Department’s grant from the Assisting Federal Facilities with Energy Conservation Technologies program is expected to save millions of dollars in energy and water production and reduce energy usage in annual electricity use. Funds will be disbursed in three increments throughout 2024. 

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A widespread push for increased green energy production is a central piece in President Joe Biden’s agenda, and it has been bolstered by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and a 2021 executive order from the president. Biden and Democrats have set a goal of achieving a “carbon pollution-free electricity sector by 2035” and making the government carbon neutral by 2050. 

Additional projects include swapping out a decades-old HVAC system at an Air Traffic Control Tower in Hawaii and installing LED lights and occupancy sensors at the Department of Transportation in Washington.