Renewable energy is one of the nation’s fastest growing business sectors, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) is at the forefront of the President’s new plan to ensure 10 percent of our electricity comes from renewable sources by 2012, and 25 percent by 2025. Millions of dollars of American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) funds have been earmarked to convert Service properties to green energy by the end of 2010. This effort is attracting a significant amount of interest among contractors large and small.

Employees at work at Sacred Power, Inc.

Sacred Power Inc. of Albuquerque, New Mexico, is the largest Native American owned renewable energy company in the United States according to the company’s owner David S. Melton. “This is the joke we like to tell,” Melton said with humor. “We’re the only one around.”

Off-Grid, active Solar PV Generators for use on remote Native American Reservations

Having been selected for a $355,000 contract to manufacture and install solar photovoltaic (PV) generators at two New Mexico national wildlife refuges, Melton expects there may be a lot less time for humor at the warehouse, as employees are called to action.

The contract calls for the installation of one 15k PV generator each, at Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge (NWR), and Sevilleta NWR. Once installed the Service hopes to reap huge benefits from the 180,000 watts of electricity generated. “We’re certainly going to lessen the taxpayer’s burden of power being purchased from the local electric company” said Melton. “We will also reduce the water burden, and let more of the coal, which is burned to process electricity in central New Mexico, stay in the ground for future generations,” Melton added.

Another benefit of the project will be the creation of work benefiting the local economy. Sixty percent of the workforce of Sacred Power Inc. is Native American, many were born and raised on New Mexico reservations, and Melton believes that 15 – 20 employees will work on this project between conceptualization and installation.

Sacred Power, Inc. President David Melton busy at work

Melton, who founded Sacred Power in February, 2001 with his partner, Master Electrician Odes Armijo-Castor, was born and raised on the Laguna Indian Pueblo in Northwest New Mexico. He holds a B.S. in Economics from University of New Mexico.

While the Sevilleta/Bosque del Apache is the first ARRA project for the firm, Sacred Power Inc. is not new to contract work for the U.S. Government “We have completed renewable energy projects for the U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Utility Services, the Department of Defense, the Department of Energy and the Bureau of Indian Affairs,” Melton said. “We now hold two patents for renewable energy applications and thanks to this project and others, we have just purchased a 1.9 million dollar, 50,000 square foot warehouse where we will be able to put many more people to work.”

Watch a video about these Recovery Act projects and hear first-hand from Sacred Power Inc. CEO, David S. Melton, how his company has benefited from Recovery Act funding.