Dominion

Electricity Transformation Coming – To What?

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The US energy system will be transformed beyond recognition in the next quarter century, but the only certainties are that no one knows what it will look like and it will cost a lot of money.

Electricity’s future is about “disruptive technologies,” speakers including Secretary of Energy Steven Chu told the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC) and the Department of Energy’s National Electricity Forum Feb. 5-9 in Washington DC, and the power industry needs “partnerships” with state regulators to invest in the uncertain new era. Keep reading →

Published February 14, 2012 at 7:00 AM

EPA Rules Won’t Hurt Electric Reliability: Department of Energy

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New environmental rules will not cause rolling blackouts or hinder electricity reliability, the Department of Energy said, responding to warnings from owners of impacted coal-fired power plants.

In a 33-page report, the DOE said it had considered ‘stringent’ conditions under which power generators would have to comply with the Environmental Protection Administration’s Cross-State Air Pollution rule and the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards as well as other emissions-control measures. Keep reading →

Published December 5, 2011 at 3:30 PM

A Vote Of Confidence For Biomass

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Wood will fuel electricity for homes and businesses in Virginia if Dominion Power receives a final green light on converting three power stations in the state from coal to biomass.

Utility executives appeared confident in the projects’ appeal for regulators as they signed an agreement with biomass fuel producer Enviva to provide woody biomass fuel to two of the power plants. Both plants, one located in Southampton and the other in Hopewell, Virginia, are set to convert from 63MW coal-fired facilities to 50MW biomass-fueled plants under current plans. Keep reading →

Published October 20, 2011 at 10:00 AM

Nuke Plants Stand The Test Of August

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It was a week that tested the nuclear industry’s strength, only months after a high-profile leakage cast a shadow over the entire sector.

Though Dominion’s North Anna nuclear plant in Northern Virginia shook in last week’s earthquake, and shut down automatically as a result; and although Southern Maryland Calvert Cliffs plant was knocked offline when Hurricane Irene blew a piece of aluminum siding into a transformer, nuclear plants along the East Coast largely remained operational and withstood the summer storms. Keep reading →

Published September 2, 2011 at 6:00 AM