Every hour, more energy from sunlight strikes the earth than the entire human population uses in a whole year. The sun's heat and light provide an abundant source of energy that can be harnessed in many ways. There are a variety of technologies that have been developed to take advantage of solar energy. These include concentrating solar power systems, passive solar heating and daylighting, photovoltaic systems to generate electricity, solar hot water, and solar process heat and space heating and cooling. The Virginia Energy supports solar energy projects that promote the broader use and application of solar technologies in the Commonwealth.
Ken Jurman at the Virginia Public Safety Training Center in Hanover,VA
Solar For All
On April 22, 2024, Virginia Energy recieved $156 million for the Solar for All program through EPA's Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund. The federal funding will result in more affordable energy through residential solar installations over a five-year period. Learn More Here
Virginia Energy Resilience
Virginia Energy and partners are working with economically impacted communities across the state to measure their energy resilience and identify practical long-term solutions to reduce or eliminate vulnerabilities through a $1 million US Department of Energy funded project. Interested in how this can benefit your community? Learn More Here
More on Solar Power
- Certification of Solar Energy or Energy Storage Projects Qualifying under §58.1-3660 Application
- Small Renewable Energy Project (Solar)- Permit by Rule
- Virginia Chapter of the Solar Energy Industries Association
- Solar Rating & Certification Corporation
- Interstate Renewable Energy Council
- American Solar Energy Society
Net Metering
Virginia's net metering law allows customers of investor-owned and cooperative electric utilities to install solar or small wind power systems on their premises to generate their own electricity. The law also allows such customers to receive full retail credit for any excess electricity their renewable energy systems generate.
Legislation from the 2020 Virginia General Assembly amended the net metering program and increased the maximum capacity of renewable generation facilities of residential customer-generators from 20 kilowatts to 25 kilowatts, and non-residential customer-generators from one to three megawatts. It also increased the generation capacity cap to 150 percent of a facilities expected annual energy consumption for customers in Dominion Energy Virginia's service territory. Additionally, the legislation increased each utility's system wide net metering cap from one percent of its adjusted Virginia peak-load forecast for the previous year to six percent of such amount, five percent of which is available to all customers and one percent is reserved for low-income utility customers.
Monthly net excess generation is carried forward into the subsequent month. At the end of each twelve-month net metering period, the utility customer may receive financial compensation for any excess generation by entering into a power purchase agreement with their electric utility.
For details on net metering, a renewable energy system, please see the State Corporation Commission Regulations Governing Net Energy Metering.
SolSmart
Virginia Energy and UVA are pleased to launch a Virginia SolSmart no-cost technical advisor program with support from The Solar Foundation to bring solar-specific resources and technical assistance to localities across Virginia. Learn more about SolSmart here »
Shared Solar And Community Solar
The U.S. Department of Energy defines a community solar project as one that has multiple subscribers who receive benefits on utility bills that are directly attributable to the project. Learn more here »
Utility Scale Solar
Utility-scale solar installations typically generate 1MW or more and feed directly to the electricity grid. These installations are typically ground-mounted and cover very large areas. Utility-scale projects can take several years to build and must comply with local and state government requirements. Learn more here »
Innovative Reclamation
Repurposing mined land to include renewable energy development. Connecting operators, land owners, and developers to opportunities on mined land properties. Learn more here »
Virginia Solar Energy Development and Energy Storage Authority
The Authority aims to accomplish:
- Developing programs that increase the availability of financing for solar energy projects;
- Facilitating the increase of solar energy generation systems on public and private sector facilities in the Commonwealth;
- Promoting the growth of the Virginia solar industry; and
- Providing a hub for collaboration between entities, both public and private, to partner on solar energy projects. Learn more here »
For questions or to learn more, please contact us »
