Dominion Energy’s 2024 Integrated Resource Plan, filed Oct. 15 with Virginia and North Carolina regulators, calls for major expansions of offshore wind, solar power and natural gas to meet surging demand in its territory. 

The document lays out multiple portfolios to meet that rising demand through significant investments in new power generation, upgrades to the power grid, energy storage and efficiency. It does not seek approval for specific projects, but offers a long-term plan based on current technology, market information and load projections. 

“We are experiencing the largest growth in power demand since the years following World War II,” Dominion Energy Virginia President Ed Baine said in a statement. “No single energy source, grid solution or energy efficiency program will reliably serve the growing needs of our customers. We need an ‘all-of-the-above’ approach, and we are developing innovative solutions to ensure we deliver for our customers.” 

The IRP included bill forecasts for Dominion’s residential customers in Virginia, who now spend $142.77 a month for 1,000 kWh and could see their bills grow by between $72.85 and $161.13 by 2035. 

Power demand is expected to grow 5.5% annually for the next 10 years and to double by 2039, according to a forecast by PJM, Dominion said. 

Just under 80% of the plan’s proposed new generation over the next 15 years is carbon-free, including 3,400 MW of new offshore wind on top of the 2,600-MW Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind (CVOW), 12,000 MW of new solar, 4,500 MW of new battery storage and small modular reactors starting in the mid-2030s. 

The CVOW project is proceeding on time and on budget, and Dominion has secured offshore leases nearby to build additional power plants. Those include 176,505 acres off Virginia Beach that could support 2.1 GW to 4 GW of wind power and an additional 38,964 acres off North Carolina that could support up to 800 MW. 

The utility asked the Virginia State Corporation Commission in a separate filing to approve 1,000 MW of additional solar, which would bring its fleet to 5,750 MW in the state. 

The remaining 20% of the plan’s power generation would come from natural gas, which Dominion said was a “critically important source of back-up power” to keep the lights on when wind and solar plants are not producing energy. 

“Winter Storm Elliott showed the need for every generating unit in the company’s fleet to be dispatched to meet the system peak early in the morning when renewable resources were not producing energy,” the IRP said. “This type of extreme weather event threatens reliability and requires resources to ensure the company can meet customer demands.” 

The company is modeling additional combustion turbines, which would function as quick-dispatch, balancing resources and combined cycle units that would operate more often, the IRP said. 

The proposal to expand coal, which could mean nearly 6 GW of new fossil-fired power plants, drew opposition from some clean energy interests and environmentalists. Advanced Energy United noted that the Virginia Clean Economy Act requires the state to move to renewable energy and a fully clean grid by 2050. 

“Dominion Energy’s latest IRP is a step in the wrong direction,” AEU’s Shawn Kelly said in a statement. “Instead of harnessing the potential of advanced energy to more reliably and cost-effectively meet Virginia’s growing energy needs and clean energy goals, this plan threatens to keep the state dependent on fossil fuels for decades. Dominion is missing a critical opportunity to lead Virginia’s clean energy transition, protect households and businesses from rising costs, and provide more resilient clean energy solutions for all Virginians.” 

All four of the plans filed with the SCC would increase emissions, said the group Clean Virginia, which called for the IRP to be rejected. 

“Dominion’s latest energy plan blatantly disregards the financial well-being and health of Virginia families,” Clean Virginia Deputy Director of Energy and Operations Kate Asquith said in a statement. “By continuing to invest in gas-burning facilities, Dominion is not just raising bills — it’s locking Virginians into a future of higher costs and greater pollution. This is unacceptable at a time when we need to be transitioning to clean, affordable energy.”