Dominion is committed to providing reliable service to its
customers now and in the future. The growing use of electricity in Northern
Virginia has placed Dominion’s ability to meet its responsibility for
its Northern Virginia customers increasingly at risk.
To overcome this risk, Dominion has received permission to
construct a new 65-mile overhead transmission line.
The company filed an application with the State Corporation
Commission on April 19, 2007 for approval and certification of the line. In
a unanimous decision on October 7, 2008, the SCC ordered that the $243 million
Meadow Brook-to-Loudoun transmission project be built and operational by July
1, 2011.
It also affirmed the 65-mile route proposed by the company
and recommended by the SCC hearing examiner that is adjacent to or within an
existing transmission line right-of-way through Warren, Rappahannock, Culpeper,
Fauquier, Prince William and Loudoun counties.
The Meadow Brook-to-Loudoun power line is part of a three-state
transmission line, with the other sections proposed by Allegheny Energy in Virginia,
West Virginia and Pennsylvania. Dominion has now received approvals from Virginia
and Pennsylvania and we anticipate receiving the final approval from West Virginia
in the very near future.
We are ready to begin construction and are committed to putting
this line in service by the summer of 2011 in order to bring our customers reliable
electric service. Activity on this critical electric infrastructure project
will begin in January 2009 in Fauquier and Prince William counties.
Need for the Line
This transmission line is essential to Dominion Virginia Power's
ability to maintain system reliability and support future growth in Northern
Virginia.
The Northern Virginia Transmission System Review
(KEMA Report) concluded there will be "significant problems in the system
that will require new transmission facilities by 2011." P. Jeffrey Palermo,
executive consultant with KEMA Inc., included the report in his testimony
before the SCC to underscore the need for major new transmission system improvements
in Northern Virginia.
The stress on the system is well recognized. A study (The
National Electric Transmission Congestion Study) conducted by the U.S.
Department of Energy in August 2006 placed Northern Virginia in one of two
national "critical congestion areas" for electricity transmission.
The DOE report stated that the region requires "billions
of dollars of investment in new transmission, generation and demand-side resources
over the next decade to protect grid reliability and ensure the area’s
economic viability."
Community Relations
Hear comments from community
members who support this project.
Send us an e-mail to provide comments
or request additional information on this transmission line project.
