CHESTERFIELD COUNTY, Va. (WRIC) — After nearly a year of intense debate and public scrutiny, Dominion Energy has selected the Chesterfield Power Station site on Coxendale Road as the location for its proposed new natural gas plant, the Chesterfield Energy Reliability Center (CERC) .
The decision, announced by Dominion Energy yesterday, follows months of co n sideration between two potential sites. The chosen location — the Chesterfield Power Station — is just a little over a mile from where the project was initially proposed a year ago .
According to Dominion Energy, the choice of the Coxendale Road site , a retired coal plant, was influenced by community feedback and the fact that a natural gas power station already exists there. The company argues that the existing permits for this site will facilitate the development of the new plant.
Dominion says it chose this site over the initial one based on feedback from the community. As there is already a natural gas power station at the site, the hope is the existing industrial footprint will minimize local environmental impacts, according to the energy company.