Dominion to add record-setting 1,000MW of solar, battery storage in Virginia service territory

Dominion Energy Inc., Virginia’s largest electric utility, is planning to develop a record level of new solar and energy projects in the state, according to a statement yesterday.

In a filing with the Virginia State Corporation Commission, the company proposed a total of 15 solar and energy storage projects: 11 utility-scale solar projects, two small-scale solar projects, one energy storage project, and one combined solar and storage project. Dominion also proposed agreements to purchase energy from 32 solar and energy storage projects operated by third-party providers.

The company said the 15 projects would provide more than 1,000 megawatts of carbon-free electricity, power more than 250,000 homes and result in roughly 4,200 clean energy jobs. The utility-scale solar proposals range from 18 MW to 150 MW, with the largest planned in King and Queen County, according to the release. The small-scale solar projects will generate 1.6 MW and 2 MW each, located in Buckingham County and Westmoreland County. These smaller projects will span between 10 and 30 acres, compared to 150-plus acres for the utility-scale ones, the company said.

The one energy storage project, located in Chesterfield County, will store 20 MW, and the combined solar and storage project, located in Loudoun County, will generate 100 MW of solar energy and store 50 MW of electricity.

The push for solar will help Dominion meet the Virginia Clean Economy Act’s renewable portfolio standard goals, requiring that 100 percent of the state’s electricity sales come from zero-emissions sources by 2045, officials said. As of 2019, natural gas provided approximately 60 percent of Virginia’s electricity, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

Dominion said the projects are expected to be completed in 2023, except for the small-scale projects and energy storage project, which will be completed in 2022, pending both local and state permits and approval from the State Corporation Commission.

[Ester Wells]

17 September 2021

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