Data centers must pay for transmission infrastructure

The State Corporation Commission is ordering data centers to cover the cost of transmission infrastructure built exclusively to serve data centers.

That will save Virginia families, small businesses, and other ratepayers “hundreds of millions of dollars,” said Gov. Abigail Spanberger.

The governor’s office had submitted a filing with the SCC in response to Dominion Energy’s request for a rate hike for transmission infrastructure, arguing that data centers, not residential ratepayers, should cover those costs.

Related story: Community members speak out against a substation at Plaza 500

The final order from the SCC, issued on July 31, directs Dominion to develop a policy to assign the cost of high-voltage transmission lines and substations to data centers and other large-load users.

“It is hard to understate the importance of this decision from the SCC for Virginia families and businesses,” said Virginia’s Chief Energy Officer Josephus Allmond. “Instead of spreading transmission costs caused directly by data centers across all ratepayers, now data centers will pay for those costs directly.”

The SCC approved a transmission line last year for a future data center at the Plaza 500 site on Edsall Road, even though a substation for that project has not been approved. The Fairfax County Planning Commission will hold a hearing on the proposed substation on Sept. 24.

Spanberger pledged to work with state lawmakers to ensure data centers “pay their fair share, adhere to strict environmental standards, and listen to the concerns of local communities.”