Beam

Camp Lejeune implements the use of electronic vehicle charging stations at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, Feb. 18, 2022. The Electronic Vehicle Autonomous, Renewable Charger 2020 is a fully off-grid, solar-powered electric vehicle charging station that fits in a standard sized parking space and is for authorized government vehicles only. (U.S. Marine Corps video by Cpl. Tanner Bernat)

The chargers help to implement the January 27, 2021 executive order, Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad, which directed the development of a national plan mandating all federal fleets acquire clean and zero emission vehicles by 2035. This directive generated derivative requirements for charging infrastructure among Marine Corps installations.

Last year, the Marine Corps acquired 21 electric vehicle (EV) chargers and distributed them among 14 installations to continue modernization of the Marine Corps through energy savings and implementation of emerging technology on installations. Sergeant Curtis Patton, a commanding general’s driver at Marine Corps Base (MCB) Quantico, describes the convenience of having Beam EV ARC 2020 electric vehicle chargers on base, and James Gough, a transportation service director at Marine Corps Installations Command (MCICOM), explains the charging capability and emerging technology.

The U.S. Marine Corps placed an order in October 2021 for 21 mobile solar-powered electric vehicle charging systems to be deployed across 14 Marine Corps bases in the continental U.S. and Hawaii. Marine Corps Logistics Base Albany was among those to benefit from this order, receiving one unit. “The functionality of it is incredible,” Zachary Haller, mobile equipment specialist supervisor, Garrison Mobile Equipment, MCLB Albany, said.