Gov.-elect Spanberger Outlines Energy Priorities with Focus on Efficiency, Battery Storage

Gov.-elect Abigail Spanberger detailed how she plans to work with legislators to make utility bills more affordable, as the cost of electricity continues to rise across the commonwealth. The incoming Democratic governor’s ideas range from bolstering battery storage capacity to reducing power use and the need for expensive transmission lines.

“I recognize the complexity of our current challenges and threats posed by the future demands, but the answer is not to sit so our problems only get worse,” Spanberger said at the state Capitol Thursday morning, as top Democratic lawmakers looked on.

Spanberger’s interest in increasing battery storage is complemented by a bill being carried by Del. Rip Sullivan, D-Fairfax, and Sen. Lamont Bagby, D-Henrico, which will increase the amount of battery storage the major utilities need to invest in as part of the Virginia Clean Economy Act.

As the battery technology is evolving, it is becoming more affordable and helps solar power be more dispatchable when the power is needed and not being produced. The measure was vetoed by term-limited Gov. Glenn Youngkin in this year’s session.

“We have to expand generation, and in doing so, it is about ensuring we can continue to attract businesses and investment. It’s also about ensuring we can literally keep the lights on for Virginians across our communities,” Spanberger said.

Spanberger also echoed the priorities of House Democrats who want to look into barriers that some homeowners face when trying to utilize efficiency and weatherization programs. One of the bills urges the utilities to expand their efficiency programs.

If the state rejoins the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), as Spanberger has stated she would make happen, then funding will flow back into the state to help fund efficiency and flood mitigation programs.

“If we were actually leveraging RGGI dollars for weatherization projects as prescribed by the programmer, we could be reducing the cost for Virginians by building up on energy efficiency,” Spanberger said.

Two bills the governor-elect is pushing would also give the State Corporation Commission the ability to create a process to measure how well the current grid infrastructure is being utilized, in hopes of cutting down on the need for new, expensive transmission lines to be built.

Many of the current and recent high-voltage transmission line cases before the SCC have been proposed to push more power directly to data centers, plans that have raised community concerns over routes and cost.

While the legislation in Democrats’ priority affordability package does not directly address data centers and the costs associated with their power demands, another bill Spanberger is supporting pushes the State Corporation Commission to come up with a review process to ensure demand load growth estimations given by utilities are accurate.

Some residents and advocates have questioned if the true amount of power being calculated based on data center proposals may potentially be inflated compared to the real amount that ends up being built. The utilities have their own ways of verifying what they say are accurate counts. This legislation would create a backup check through the SCC.

In an effort to expand small solar projects to bring every electron possible onto the grid, Spanberger said she supports a recommendation from the Commission on Electric Utility Regulation to make small solar projects more accessible, including balcony solar panels that would be exempt from utility approval requirements.

All of these bills will be formally filed and considered in the regular legislative session that begins Jan. 14.

by Shannon Heckt, Virginia Mercury

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