In its 2024 Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) filed with the Virginia State Corporation Commission (SCC) and the North Carolina Utilities Commission (NCUC), Dominion Energy Virginia laid out multiple portfolio options to meet rising power demand through significant investments in new power generation from every source, expansion, and modernization of the power grid, energy storage, and energy efficiency programs.
The IRP is not a request to build any specific project, but rather a long-term planning document based on current technology, market information, and load projections. Nearly 80% of the plan’s incremental power generation over the next 15 years is carbon-free, including:
- ~3,400 megawatts (MW) of new offshore wind in addition to the 2,600-MW Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind (CVOW) project currently under development off the coast of Virginia Beach.
- ~12,000 MW of new solar, a more than 150% increase to the 4,750 MW of solar the company currently has in operation or under development.
- ~4,500 MW of new battery storage.
- Small modular nuclear reactors beginning in the mid-2030s.
About 20% of the plan’s incremental power generation will come from natural gas, which Dominion Energy said is a “critically important source of reliable backup power” to ensure the lights stay on when the company’s wind and solar fleet are not producing electricity.
The IRP is based on a forecast developed by PJM, which projects that power demand will continue growing at unprecedented levels in the coming decades. Power demand within the company’s delivery zone is forecasted to grow 5.5% annually for the next decade and to double by 2039.
“We are experiencing the largest growth in power demand since the years following World War II,” said Ed Baine, President of Dominion Energy Virginia. “No single energy source, grid solution, or energy efficiency program will reliably serve the growing needs of our customers. We need an ‘all-of-the-above’ approach, and we are developing innovative solutions to ensure we deliver for our customers. I am proud of the affordability we deliver, with residential rates 14% below the national average, and as shown in the plan we intend to continue that focus. Our comprehensive plan ensures we can always deliver reliable, affordable and increasingly clean energy – day or night, rain or shine, winter or summer.”
Dominion proposes more solar
In a separate filing with the SCC today, Dominion Energy proposed more than 1,000 MW of new solar projects in Virginia. If the proposed projects are approved, the company’s solar fleet in operation or under development – which is currently the second largest among utilities in the U.S. – will surpass 5,750 MW in Virginia. That is enough to power more than 1.4 million homes at peak output.
At the same time, the company is also making investments to expand the transmission grid. In the first half of 2024, Dominion Energy completed 123 new transmission projects, including nearly 90 miles of new and rebuilt transmission lines and 13 new substations. Last month, the company jointly proposed several new large transmission projects with First Energy and American Electric Power to strengthen electric reliability across the 13-state PJM region over the next decade. These projects are meant to also support further integration of the renewables included in the IRP.
In July, Dominion Energy Virginia issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) seeking Power Purchase Agreements from renewable and other carbon-free energy sources located within PJM territory, not including those located in the state of Virginia.
