Virginia Forces Power Giants To Squeeze More Energy From Existing Grid

Virginia’s House of Delegates unanimously passed a bill that would push the state’s two biggest utilities to get more out of their existing power grids. HB434 targets Appalachian Power and Dominion Energy. It directs the State Corporation Commission to work with both utilities to create new metrics measuring how well they use their current infrastructure.

Under the bill, both utilities must file petitions by November 1, 2026. These petitions would establish specific measurements comparing current grid performance to ideal utilization. The SCC would then issue a final order by July 1, 2027, analyzing the data and setting timelines for improvement.

Utilities face a 2026 deadline to measure how well they’re using what they’ve already built.

The metrics focus on three key areas. First, they’d measure the ratio of peak load to total grid capacity. Second, they’d compare actual electricity delivered to the total amount the system could deliver. Third, they’d track the percentage of electricity lost during distribution. Power grids are designed to handle peak demand, which means they’re underused most of the year. The goal is to improve efficiency so grids can handle peak demand without costly infrastructure upgrades.

The bill also highlights non-wires alternatives as tools to boost efficiency. These include energy storage, customer-owned power resources, utility-owned distributed generation, and virtual power plants. These options can reduce the need for expensive new substations or transmission lines. Advances in smart grid efficiency have made it increasingly possible for utilities to optimize power distribution without building new infrastructure.

Del. Destiny LeVere Bolling, a Democrat from Henrico, sponsored the legislation. It’s now headed to the Senate Commerce and Labor Committee. The SCC says the bill isn’t expected to cost ratepayers anything. A companion bill from Del. Lee Ware would have the state Department of Energy conduct a similar analysis of grid utilization opportunities.

The push fits with efforts to address rising energy costs in Virginia. Virginia’s growing data center industry has driven up electricity demand across the state. Officials have described the surge as the next industrial transformation.

The bill would also tie these new metrics to future capital investment approvals. That means utilities would need to show they’re maximizing existing assets before seeking cost recovery for new projects.

Seasonal utilization assessments would be required after the SCC’s final order, giving regulators ongoing data to evaluate grid performance.