Category: Energy
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Electric Grid Reliability at Risk by 2030, PJM Says
by James A. Bacon The regional interconnection organization PJM has identified four trends that could put the reliability of the electric grid for Virginia and a dozen other member states at risk by 2030. Dudes, that’s seven years away! According to a new study, “Energy Transition in PJM: Resource Retirements, Replacements & Risks,” the four…
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Coal in Virginia
by James C. Sherlock When we talk of coal today, which is seldom, it is usually not treated well. It is easy to forget (if some even know) that coal powered the industrial revolution, made America the richest nation in the world and fueled American war production that supported allied victories in both world wars…
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Energy Outcome Cloudy as Adjournment Looms
by Steve Haner With adjournment less than a week away, the 2023 General Assembly is a mixed bag for electricity consumers, with the Assembly seeming to release control to regulators in some areas but continuing to assert its tight control in others. Dominion Energy Virginia’s legislation to sweeten its authorized profit margin, which will not…
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Strange Bedfellows Unite Against Dominion Bill
by Steve Haner Battles over utility ratemaking can produce some “strange bedfellow” coalitions. Check out the list of advocacy organizations which have banded together to oppose Dominion Energy Virginia’s pending bill to mandate a higher profit margin. The list appeared in a full page advertisement in the Sunday Richmond Times-Dispatch and can also be found…
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Dominion’s Ads Deceive About Ratepayer Impact
by Steve Haner Dominion Energy Virginia has launched a major advertising campaign advocating legislation to increase its allowed profit margin, with ads focused on a deceptive message that the bill will actually lower costs for consumers. It will not. The print version of the campaign, which can be seen in a full page ad in…
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Youngkin Thwarts Dominion Push for Higher Profit
by Steve Haner A Virginia House of Delegates committee has rebuffed Dominion Energy Virginia’s bid to change the rules on how much profit it can earn, setting up a confrontation with the utility and its allies in the Virginia Senate. Governor Glenn Youngkin (R) reportedly encouraged the delegates to take the step and sent a…
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Dominion Seeks Return of RGGI Tax to Its Bills
by Steve Haner The on again, off again, direct tax on Dominion Energy Virginia bills to pay for the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) may be on again. If you feel like you are watching a shell game and just cannot find the pea, that is intentional. In its sales pitch for its latest effort…
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No, Senator, Cold Kills More People Than Heat
by Steve Haner No more will Virginians have to suffer through hot summer days without the active intervention of Big Government. Virginia’s Senate Democrats are proudly advancing legislation to demand state government develop a comprehensive statewide heat emergency response plan, and then seek to impose its leadership by “coordinating” with other state agencies and local…
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Support Governor Youngkin’s RGGI Repeal
by Colin M. Kelly I can only laugh at the headlines and statements being made by the media and climate alarmists about Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s efforts to pull Virginia out of the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI). The headline “Returning Millions to Virginia” really grates: The state takes money out of the consumer’s pocket with…
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“Strong Words” In Bills Give SCC Power On Rates
By Steve Haner One sentence, if it is the right sentence, can upset the machinations of the powerful. Two bills pending in the 2023 Virginia General Assembly contain such a sentence, and it could upset the plans of Dominion Energy Virginia. Here is the sentence at the heart of both bills: …if the (State Corporation)…
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Wojick On Whales IV: Deaths Spiked with Surveys
By David Wojick The recent deaths of seven whales off New Jersey, mostly humpbacks, drew national media attention. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Fisheries Directorate is responsible for whales. An outrageous statement by their spokesperson got me to do some research on humpback whale deaths. The results are appalling. The evidence seems clear that…
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Is Unnamed Partner on Wind Project Driving This New Dominion Regulation Rewrite?
By Steve Haner Without fanfare and without awakening the drowsy Capitol press corps, Dominion Energy Virginia dropped in legislation last week to set up a partnership on its most massive capital investment, the Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind project. Just who that partner might be, what if any benefits that provides to Dominion’s 2.6 million Virginia…
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After Federal Threat to Gas Stoves, Virginia Republicans Try Again on Right to Gas
by Steve Haner First published this morning by the Thomas Jefferson Institute for Public Policy. Legislation to enshrine the right to use natural gas and propane in Virginia law, a repeat of a failed effort from 2022, cleared a House of Delegates committee Tuesday. The ultimate showdown will come not in the Republican-controlled House but…
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Consumers Be Wary When Energy Elephants Dance
By Steve Haner First published this morning by the Thomas Jefferson Institute for Public Policy. The Virginia House of Delegates is expected to vote this week to exempt certain Virginia manufacturers, which ones to be determined later, from the coming wave of energy costs created by Virginia’s rapid transition to unreliable forms of power generation.