Virginia State Corporation Commission members hear testimony concerning Dominion Energy’s proposed rate increase and plan to create a new rate class for data centers on September 2, 2025 in Richmond. (Photo by Shannon Heckt/Virginia Mercury)
The State Corporation Commission has reasserted its approval of Dominion Energy’s Chesterfield Energy Reliability Center (CERC), after it denied multiple environmental advocacy groups’ appeal to reconsider the decision. Now, the groups are taking another tack to try and stop the project.
The gas peaker plant, a 944 megawatt facility, is slated to be used about 33% of the time to offset the strain on the grid during the hottest and coldest days of the year. The $1.47 billion project will be on the site of a former coal plant in Chesterfield just south of Richmond near the James River. It is anticipated that construction will begin in 2026 and be completed in 2029…