Some changes from Virginia’s General Assembly mean Alexandria residents, along with others across the state, will see a lower energy bill this month.
Dominion Energy Virginia said in a release that rates will go down by about $14 a month for most residential customers and potentially lower for non-residential customers.
“The rate reduction was enabled by bipartisan legislation passed in the 2023 Virginia General Assembly, which eliminated about $7 in monthly charges,” the release from Dominion said. “The law also allowed the company to seek regulatory approval to spread fuel costs over a multi-year period, which lowers the monthly fuel charge by an additional $7. The lower fuel charge will remain on an interim basis, pending Virginia State Corporation Commission (SCC) approval of the company’s long-term fuel securitization proposal.”
Rate negotiation was a big part and somewhat complicated part of the legislative docket in the state government earlier this year. There was bipartisan agreement on bills that spread out increased charges across multiple years, a process called securitization.
Dominion has come under fire from Alexandria leadership in recent years for the shoddy state of the city’s power grid, but there seem to be some signs of the rift healing as city leaders express some — albeit extremely skeptical — enthusiasm for new improvements the company is making to the city’s infrastructure.
“At a time when consumers are paying higher prices for most goods and services, we’re pleased to lower our customers’ rates,” said Ed Baine, President of Dominion Energy Virginia, in the release. “This will provide immediate relief for our customers now and ongoing savings in the future. It’s an important part of our mission of delivering reliable, affordable and increasingly clean energy to our customers.”