Arotech Corporation announced April 20 that its U.S. Power Systems Division, UEC Electronics, has recently received a $2.6 million contract from the Marine Corps to design, develop and deliver four MEHPS systems. 

MEHPS portable solutions combine battery technology with existing generator and solar solutions to power forward deployed units. The MEHPS product harnesses solar power and intelligently reduces run-time on generators, reducing fuel consumption and extending generator life. 

“The Department of Defense continues to advance initiatives that will increase energy efficiency and enable our forces to perform missions, while acknowledging energy as a potential vulnerability,” said Steven Esses, president and CEO of Arotech. “Demand for renewable and hybrid energy power generation systems continues to grow and Arotech is well positioned to capitalize on a significant opportunity. This contract award is a testament to our team and the performance of our product. We are excited about this opportunity and are optimistic that this award could lead to additional orders in the future.”

UEC Electronics previously designed and developed a smaller hybrid power solution for the Marine Corps. The 1kW Ground Renewable Expeditionary Energy Network System (GREENS) is now being produced by UEC under a $40.8 million IDIQ contract.

This latest MEHPS award is for a scalable (up to 15kW) design for use at forward operating bases and is a significant part of the DoD’s strategy to reduce fuel consumption by 25% prior to 2025. The Marine Corp’s roadmap calls for MEHPS production beginning in 2018.

International customers are watching the MEHPS program as well.  MEHPS was one of four “pathfinder” projects announced by Prime Minister Modi (India) and President Obama in January 2015 under the Defense Technology and Trade Initiative.