Good stuff from Clean Virginia:
Dear friend,
Dominion Energy’s latest long-term energy plan once again failed to receive approval from state regulators, leaving Virginians in the dark about how our largest utility plans to meet the energy challenges of the future.
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Read our brand new blog post to discover why Dominion’s long-term energy plan missed the mark for a THIRD time, and get a behind the scenes look at how this critical planning process impacts your power bills and Virginia’s clean energy future.
Dominion is already taking steps to develop its next long-term energy plan, due this fall. It’s time to shine a light on the importance of this often overlooked process so we can hold utilities accountable for meeting demand with clean and affordable energy that works for every Virginian.
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Sincerely,
Amy Waters, Clean Virginia Communications Manager
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A few highlights from the blog post:
- “Experts from a variety of organizations, including Appalachian Voices, Advanced Energy United, Clean Virginia and the Virginia Chapter of the Sierra Club, critiqued the utility’s plan, citing concerns over affordability, environmental impacts and a planning process that largely excluded meaningful stakeholder input.”
- “Testifying on behalf of Clean Virginia, Dr. Bryndis Woods, who has a doctorate in Environment and Natural Resources from the University of Iceland and is a Senior Researcher at the Applied Economics Clinic, argued Dominion’s latest IRP should again be rejected for failing to comply with state law and for the energy monopolies’ overreliance on costly, unproven technologies.”
- “Dominion’s 2023 IRP contains five possible options for meeting expected energy demand, all of which fall short of meeting the basic obligations of the VCEA, including requirements for energy efficiency, renewable energy and fossil fuel plant retirements.”
- “During proceedings, an expert for Dominion Energy confirmed that three of its plans do not meet the utility’s own stated goal of reaching net zero emissions by 2050 while the other two plans rely on technology that does not currently exist.”
- “Dominion has made no effort to reduce demand from large customers like data centers and anticipates virtually zero incremental energy efficiency savings after 2025, insinuating the utility does not plan to meet the legal requirements outlined in the VCEA.”
- “In drafting its IRP, the utility did not meaningfully consult with external stakeholders or communities that would be impacted by its plans, including ‘environmental justice communities,’ defined by the Virginia Environmental Justice Act (VEJA) as any low-income community or community of color. “
- “In December 2023, the SCC Hearing Examiner, Ann Berkebile, released a statement recommending the Commissioners reject the IRP given that it is neither ‘reasonable’ nor ‘in the public interest.'”
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