From nuclear to solar and beyond, Governor Youngkin's Energy Plan embraces an all-of-the-above strategy for ensuring Virginians enjoy a safe, clean and affordable energy future. Learn more about the plan, the data behind it and what it could mean for you at the link below.
~ Gov. Glenn Youngkin
To ensure that Virginia is the best place to live, work and raise a family, Virginia must grow. We need to grow new jobs. We need to grow new businesses. We need to grow our population. And, to fuel that growth, we need a sensible, achievable, energy plan that provides abundant, reliable, affordable and clean energy.
We need to keep families warm in the winter and safe from the summer heat. We need to keep the kitchen humming at the family-owned restaurant getting ready for the dinner rush. We need to keep the lights on, the internet powered, communication flowing, and we need to do it without driving further runaway inflation.
As we look to build on our dominance in energy-intensive industries like data centers and advanced computing and increase our leadership in emerging fields like advanced manufacturing, ag-tech, and biopharmaceuticals, we know that our grid must deliver power, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, and it must deliver that power at a competitive price.
We must reject the mindset that it is "either/or," and embrace the reality that it is "both/and." The only way to confidently move towards a reliable, affordable and clean energy future in Virginia is to go all-in on innovation in nuclear, carbon capture, and new technology like hydrogen generation, along with building on our leadership in offshore wind and solar.
Energy innovation will not just honor our calling to environmental stewardship, it will deliver economic development and job creation opportunities across the Commonwealth, including in Southwest Virginia, where this plan calls for launching a commercial small modular nuclear reactor (SMR) in the next 10 years.
The release of this plan is the start of a conversation about Virginia's Energy Future. It is the start of a movement. We need to push beyond petty politics and execute on a real strategy to provide the reliable, affordable and clean energy economy of tomorrow that Virginians deserves.
I want to thank the hundreds of individuals and groups who had a role in shaping this plan over the past months. Every one of you has a part to play going forward.
Let's get to work.
The 2022 Virginia Energy Plan charts a path forward for Virginia toward incorporating renewable energy technologies while keeping energy rates affordable, guaranteeing reliable energy delivery, making Virginia's energy economy more competitive, opening the door to innovative technologies and incorporating necessary environmental stewardship.
The plan is motivated by Virginia's growing energy demands from a rising population and from expanding businesses and economic growth, especially in energy-intensive sectors like data centers. As the Commonwealth continues to move toward cleaner energy sources, the plan aims to balance reliability, affordability and environmental stewardship through a pragmatic, "all-of-the-above" approach.
The full report includes an assessment of the current state of the Commonwealth's energy economy, a practical approach for Virginia to base future policy decisions and a series of commonsense recommendations for policymakers and industry participants to adopt quickly.
The governor's "all of the above" approach embraces a diverse energy mix, including natural gas, nuclear, renewables and innovative emerging technologies to meet Virginia's diverse energy needs now and in the future.
Maintaining baseload generation from sources like natural gas and nuclear is crucial for ensuring reliable, around-the-clock power supply as renewable integration increases. The plan expresses concern about the Virginia Clean Economy Act's mandated retirement of natural gas plants by 2045-2050 and recommends exploring alternative baseload technologies or utility-scale energy storage solutions.
The 2022 Virginia Energy Plan relies on a set of 5 core principles that guide its analysis and recommendations.
Ensuring a consistent and dependable supply of electricity to meet the energy demands of a growing Virginia.
Leveraging innovation and competition to drive lower energy costs for Virginians.
Developing and deploying innovative technologies like small modular nuclear reactors (SMRs), hydrogen generation and carbon capture to drive economic growth and job creation.
Introducing more competition within Virginia's regulated energy market to lower costs, increase consumer choice and drive innovation.
Responsibly managing Virginia's natural resources and environmental sustainability throughout the energy production lifecycle.
For the full list of recommendations, please refer to the 2022 Virginia Energy Plan.
The recommendations aim to ensure the stability of Virginia's energy grid by periodically reevaluating and reauthorizing the Clean Economy Act to align with technological advancements. The report advocates for restoring the State Corporation Commission's discretion on power plant retirements to maintain reliability, facilitating expedited approval of critical infrastructure projects and improving forecasting for energy needs.
The recommendations focus on granting the SCC proactive authority for Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) requirements, restoring biennial rate reviews and expanding resources for consumer protection to ensure fair utility pricing. The report also proposes legislative changes to allow the SCC full discretion in rate reviews and a comparative cost analysis for renewable projects, ultimately aiming to enhance billing transparency and protect ratepayers.
The recommendations seek to drive innovation in the energy sector by deploying small modular nuclear reactors, establishing a nuclear hub and supporting emerging energy generation technologies. The report also recommends developing a hydrogen roadmap and incentivizing energy infrastructure development, leveraging federal and state funds to foster technological advancement and economic growth.
The recommendations focus on expanding opportunities for renewable competitive service providers, facilitating energy load aggregation and streamlining distributed generation and shared solar programs. The report also proposes opening select projects to competitive bidding, aiming to foster competition in the market, and potentially reduce costs for consumers.
The recommendations emphasize responsible management of resources and environmental sustainability by legislating end-of-life planning for energy developments and promoting renewable energy recycling technologies. The report also suggests initiatives to mitigate methane emissions from coal mines and promote energy efficiency through the implementation of smart grid technologies and demand response programs.
As part of the stakeholder engagement process, numerous organizations and individuals were able to contribute to the Virginia Energy Plan. Over 750 comments were received from a wide variety of stakeholders that include Academia, State Government, Local Government, Public Commissions, Public Authorities, Advisory Boards, Non-Profits, Private Business, Trade Groups, and other entities. Contributions were also made by over 100 private individuals.
Virginia Department of Energy © 2021