Virginia SCC Warns Of Higher Costs For Dominion Energy Customers As IRP Approved
June 28,2019
The Virginia State Corporation Commission (SCC) has approved the revised Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) filed by Dominion Energy Virginia
While the SCC said that Dominion’s revised plan met the minimum filing requirements of Virginia law, it also warned that the IRP "may significantly understate the costs facing Dominion’s customers."
The SCC said, "The IRP includes a true least-cost plan as a benchmark for providing a reliable supply of electrical power. As ordered by the Commission, Dominion also showed the additional costs of the various legislative mandates contained in Senate Bill 966 passed by the 2018 General Assembly. And, evidence was presented at an SCC hearing in May on the capital spending plans that Dominion presented to Wall Street analysts earlier this Spring."
The SCC said, "The evidence demonstrated that the Senate Bill 966 mandates will cost customers more than $6 billion in extra costs above the least-cost plan, not including lifetime financing costs."
The SCC said, "The evidence also showed that the capital spending plans Dominion presented to Wall Street analysts on March 25, 2019 included approximately $12.1 billion in capital investment to be paid for by Virginia customers, the majority of which is eligible to be recovered through separate bill riders called rate adjustment clauses."
The SCC said, "These costs will have an impact on the rates customers will pay in their monthly bills over the next five years and beyond. By December 31, 2023, the estimated monthly increase will be $29.37 for the average residential customer."
The SCC said, "The Commission recognized that Dominion believes this monthly bill impact will be mitigated by lower fuel costs and other factors. However, the Commission noted that the $29.37 monthly bill increase does not include the monthly bill impact of several billion dollars of costs for the 2019 coal ash removal legislation that will be recovered from customers."
The Commission stated, “In sum, we approve Dominion’s IRP as legally sufficient, and we recognize the appropriateness of spending on capital projects when need is proven by factual evidence in actual cases. We do not, however, express approval in this Final Order of the magnitude or specifics of Dominion’s future spending plans, the costs of which will significantly impact millions of residential and business customers in the monthly bills they must pay for power.”