Today’s Virginian-Pilot has a good editorial (“Richmond’s big gift from our pockets“). As the Pilot reported Thursday, Dominion Virginia Power customers paid $523.7 million too much last year. “The typical residential customer’s share comes to about $133, but they’ll never get all of that money back. Customers who feel that’s unfair can thank state legislators for a law that makes a full reimbursement impossible”.
In 2007, Dominion lobbyists provided its marching orders to our General Assembly legislators. Legislation favoring Dominion’s bottomline profit margin passed out of committees and subcommittees, whereas bills cutting in even marginally to Dominion’s profits died or were emasculated beyond recognition. Sen. Mary Margaret Whipple’s RPS legislation is a perfect example. Hers was a renewable energy bill mandating a gradual schedule whereby power generators would be required to produce a certain percentage of their energy from renewable sources. Her bill along with the re-regulation bill went in to Sen. Stolle’s Commerce committee and only one came out. A placatory bone was tossed whereby a voluntary RPS was thrown into the re-reg bill. Dominion is nowhere near meeting Virginia’s meager voluntary RPS goal of 12%. It’s 4% by 2010, 7% by 2016 and 12% by 2022.
According to their website, “The 2008 average mix of energy resources supplying Dominion Virginia Power included: Coal (46%), Nuclear (41%), Natural Gas (8%), Hydro/Other Renewables (4%), and Oil (1%)”. The dirty Wise coal plant with its anticipated 20% (117 megawatts) energy coming from biomass, Dominion will generate a mere 533 megawatts from renewable source in Virginia. Another 757 megawatts of renewable energy generation will come from wind facilities in Illinois, West Virginia and Indiana, bringing their total renewable energy generation to 1290 megawatts. Subtract out the Wise 117 megawatts (not available until 2013), compare that to the more than 26,500 megawatts in Dominion’s total generating assets and you thus have that 4%. (Of note, 79% of that 26,500 megawatts is sold to Virginia customers.)
In an October 30, 2009 report to the SCC, Dominion, as required by Virginia Code, reported how it was going to meet its RPS goals. Satisfied with its existing renewable energy generation (the mere 533 megawatts), Dominion plans to meet RPS goals via contracts with various renewable energy NUGs (non-utility generators). Ergo the large majority of the renewable energy powering Virginia’s homes and businesses will come from the mid-West. Hell, our renewable energy could likely come from Delaware offshore wind as Dominion has no interest or incentive to assist in Virginia’s own production of its own offshore wind.
Dominion’s limited idea of corporate responsibility is best on display with their “Virginia Green Power” program, whereby it makes renewable energy available to its Virginia customers provided those customers are willing to pay extra for it.
Via its “Green Power” program, Dominion customers can elect to pay an extra $0.015 (a penny and a half) per kilowatt-hour (kWh) for electricity generated from renewable sources. As reported through December 2009, 74% of this power came from wind facilities in Indiana and Missouri and 26% from bio-mass facilities in Illinois (landfill gas), Louisiana (paper pulp), and Pennsylvania (digester gas).
The “get rich quick” mentality obviously pervades Dominion. Greater and speedier investment in renewable energy generation cuts into their short-term profits. And our legislators in the General Assembly understand that and customize their agendas to accomodate them. Thanks to them, Dominion has absolutely no incentive to pursue greater renewable energy generation. Add to that how the General Assembly doesn’t disincentivize pursuit of dirty energy generation. There is no cost to Dominion for polluting our air and water, blowing up our mountains, contributing to global warming and sea level rise, and jeopardizing our health and well being.
Thus, the only hope for renewable energy generation in Virginia will likely come via Federal legislation, that finally makes the cost of dirty energy too costly for Dominion to ignore, squash and/or apply only lip service to. It’s so illogical especially considering the huge job oppurtunities for Virginians presented by offshore wind.
Share on Facebook
Join us on Facebook.
Follow us on Twitter.