DOD releases FY-15 operational energy report

The Defense Department used more than 88 million barrels of fuel in fiscal year 2015, and anticipates using slightly fewer barrels in FY-16 due to operational tempo and some new initiatives, according to the department's most recent annual report on operational energy.

"Improved medium generators are consuming 21 percent less fuel than their predecessors, Hybrid Electric Drive propulsion systems are providing new amphibious ships with 2.5 more days on station . . . between refuelings when used 50 percent of the time, and improved routing and cargo loading for airlift aircraft mean less fuel is needed to sustain global operations," according to the report cleared for publication on Aug. 15.

More than 50 percent of this fuel used in FY-15 was purchased outside of the United States in an aim to help reduce "the risks associated with moving fuel over long distances," according to the report.

The Pentagon revised its 2011 operational energy strategy "to account for strategic guidance, the evolving operational environment and experience from the battlefield," according to the report.

This updated strategy "reaffirms the crucial role of operational energy in enabling our forces to perform worldwide missions; assesses changes in strategic direction and the operational environment; and establishes revised objectives for increasing future capabilities, identifying and reducing risk and enhancing current mission effectiveness," the report states.

Operational energy is defined as "'energy required for training, moving and sustaining military forces and weapons platforms for military operations,' and it includes energy used by ships, aircraft, combat vehicles and tactical power generators," according to the report.