The Move Towards Clean Energy
July 5, 2020. The 4 major energy companies involved in planning for the Atlantic Coast Pipeline decide to cancel the project, originally proposed 6 years ago. This was due to increased delays for the construction of the pipeline, caused by legal uncertainties and increasing costs. This comes as a relief to many communities that would’ve been negatively affected, as well as to environmentalists concerned about the impact on the natural areas surrounding the pipeline’s proposed path.
June 15, 2020. The Supreme Court rules on a case that removes a major obstacle causing delays in construction of the Atlantic Coast Pipeline. There was disagreement over the pipeline crossing under the Appalachian Trial in the George Washington National Forest, but the Supreme Court ruled that the U.S. Forest Service can grant the pipeline right of way under the trail.
May 1, 2020. Dominion Energy releases its 2020 Integrated Resource Plan. This covers the 15 year period from 2021-2035. Unlike the previous IRP, this one establishes a company-wide commitment to achieve net zero carbon dioxide and methane emissions by 2050.
April 11, 2020. Virginia Governor Northam approves the Virginia Clean Economy Act. Virginia becomes the ninth state to mandate a transition to 100% clean electricity. Dominion Energy and Appalachian Power are required to be 100% carbon free by 2045 and 2050 respectively. Nearly all coal-powered plants in the state must be closed by 2024.
December 21, 2019. The Cooperative Agreement between the Virginia DMME and the UVA Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service is formed, establishing the Virginia Clean Energy Project (our group!). This team is tasked with provding research and technical assistance to DMME in support of EO-43.
November 26, 2019. UVA and William & Mary announce plans to work together on a 10-year sustainability track to reach carbon neutrality by 2030. The schools plan to share information and resources in order to better eachothers strategic plans.
September 16, 2019. Virginia Governor Northam passes Executive Order 43 (EO-43), “Expanding Access to Clean Energy and Growing the Clean Energy Jobs of the Future”. EO-43 requires the Director of the Virginia Department of Mines, Minerals, and Energy (DMME) to develop an action plan to produce 30% of Virginia’s electricity from renewable sources by 2030 and 100% from carbon-free sources by 2050.
June 27, 2019. The VA State Corporation (SCC) approves Dominion’s revised 2018 Integrated Resource Plan, acknowledging that it is within the legal requirements, yet warning that the IRP likely significantly underestimates the cost for Dominion’s customers.
December 7, 2018. The VA State Corporation (SCC) rejects Dominion’s 2018 Integrated Resource plan and requests that it be redone. This is the first time the VA SCC has rejected a utility plan, citing that the plan is unreasonable due to its high cost to customers and that it is not in line with the energy legislation passed earlier that year, the Grid Transformation and Security Act.
May 1, 2018. Dominion Energy Virginia submits its 2018 Integrated Resource Plan to the Virginia State Corporation Commission. It comprises a 15 year plan (2019-2033). The plan demonstrates a move toward cleaner, more efficient, and lower-emission energy sources.
March 9, 2018. Virginia amends and reenacts parts of Title 56 of the Virginia Code. A new section to the code was added, known as the Grid Transformation and Security Act. It is designed to lower electric bills for utility customers and set up a feasible long-term model for Virginia in securing and modenerizing its electric grid and investing in sustainable energy. The bill also makes major changes to the oversight process of utility companies, mandating 3-year financial and procedural reviews of electric utility companies by the SCC to ensure compliance. It includes plans for electric utility regulation, grid modernization and transformation projects, wind and solar generation facilities, rate reductions, energy storage facilities, and more.
August 2017. Dominion Energy Virginia announces a solar energy project in partnership with UVA and Coronal Energy. UVA will purchase a 120-acre solar energy facility developed and built by Coronal Energy and Dominion Energy. The facility will be able to power 9 percent of the University’s electric demand once finished.
June 1, 2017. Several states come together to form the United States Climate Alliance, dedicated to upholding the objectives of the Paris Agreement on climate change, in response to the U.S. exiting the agreement. Virginia joins within the first few days following the formation of the group.
June 1, 2017. President Trump announces the U.S. will withdrawal from the Paris Agreement on climate change mitigation. The earliest effective withdrawal date is November 4, 2020, due to a four-year exit process as part of the agreement.
April 22, 2016. The Paris Agreement is signed by the United Nations. Each country must plan and contribute to mitigating global warming through reducing emissions of greenhouse gases, and they must report on their progress.
December 30, 2015. The Virginia SCC approves Dominion’s 2015 Integrated Resource Plan, with some ciriticisms. The Commission noted that the nxt IRP from Dominion should be in compliance with the EPA’s new Clean Power Plan, and should include more about solar generation development.
October 23, 2015. The EPA’s Clean Power Plan is published under the Obama administration, designed to lower amounts of carbon dioxide emitted by power generators. This was a historic step in starting to reduce carbon pollution from power generation. Power plants are the largest source of carbon dioxide emissions in the U.S., and the Plan puts the U.S. on track to cut carbon pollution by 30% by 2030.
July 1, 2015. Dominion Energy files its 2015 Integrated Resource Plan with the Virginia SCC and the North Carolina Utilities Comission, in compliance with the recently amended Virginia Code. The IRP encompasses the 15-year planning period from 2016 to 2030. It offers a short-term action plan for the 2016-2020 period, but does not present a preferred energy resource or concrete action plan moving forward. Instead, it offers a set of alternatice paths to “test” plausible scenarios for the future in energy generation.
February 24, 2015. Virginia approves an act to amend and reenact the Electric Utility Integrated Resource Planning chapter from the Code of Virginia. Electric utility companies are now required to file an updated IRP by July 1, 2015 and every year after that by May 1. The update to the law also suspends regulatory reviews of utility company earnings.
September 2, 2014. Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe reveals plans for the Atlantic Coast Pipeline, a new project in natural gas lead by Dominion Energy. It is proposed to cost $5 billion in construction, and will primarily run through North Carolina, West Virginia, and Virginia. The pipeline is proposed to bring natural gas to growing markets in the surrounding areas as well as create jobs, but it met with environmental concerns.
August 31, 2012. Dominion Energy files its 2012 Integrated Resource Plan for the Virginia SCC and the North Carolina Utilities Company. It mainly addresses changes the company will make to accommodate growing electric power needs from customers in a cost-effective manner. It does however introduce a potential plan with some renewable resources.
February 17, 2009. President Obama signs the Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. The act allocates billions of dollars in funding to various energy investments including renewable energy development, improved energy storage technology, electric grid modernization, and energy efficiency.
March 8, 2008. Virginia adds Chapter 24 to Title 56 of the Virginia Code, Electric Utility Integrated Resource Planning. The chapter introduces Integrated Resource Plans (IRPs) as “ a document developed by an electric utility that provides a forecast of its load obligations and a plan to meet those obligations by supply side and demand side resources over the ensuing 15 years to promote reasonable prices, reliable service, energy independence, and environmental responsibility”. The law requires that each electric utility company files an initial IRP with the Virginia SCC by September 1, 2009, and at least every 2 years after. The code also implements regulations for utility company financial affiars to be moderated by the SCC, including rate adjustments in order to insure fair returns to customers.
November 17, 2007. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) releases the final volume of its report on Global Climate Change. The report states that climate change is currently happening and is mostly a result of human activity. It also details the potential effects of global warming in the future, inlcuding analysis into potential costs. This report is the final report in a series of four reports released by the IPCC in 2007.
2007. Virginia passes the Electric Utility Regulation Act. At this time, Virginia was in transition to electric deregulation (due to the 1999 Restructuring Act), attempting to allow new competitors of energy suppliers to enter the market. However, competitors to the two big electric utilities, Dominion and Appalachian Power Co., did not develop. The 2007 Act abandoned the proposition of deregulation and instead established a limited regulatory system for the SCC in setting rates for the two major utility companies. This was controlled through the implementation of biennial reviews of base rates by the SCC. The 2007 Act also included incentives and bonuses encouraging utility companies to build new power generation facilities. The structure of the regulatory system by the SCC is mainly in effect today, although there were some later changes.