FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:
Brennan Gilmore, Executive Director
[email protected] | (571) 733-0474
November 26, 2025
State Corporation Commission Approves Dominion Rate Hike, Punts on Data Center Costs
CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA — The Virginia State Corporation Commission (SCC) yesterday issued its final order in Dominion Energy’s latest rate case. The SCC rejected Dominion’s full request for a large rate hike and massively increased profit margin; however, the final decision still means higher monthly bills for many Virginians who are already feeling the strain of rising costs. The SCC took initial steps to tackle the urgent issue of data center demand, creating a new rate class for large users and requesting Dominion present a plan for how to assign generation system costs in its 2027 rate proceeding.
As a monopoly utility in Virginia, Dominion is required by law to have its rates approved by state regulators at the SCC. This spring, Dominion asked the SCC to approve a plan to raise the average customer’s monthly electric bill by approximately 15%. As part of this request, Dominion asked the SCC to approve a significant increase in the profit the corporation is allowed to earn from its customers, known as the return on equity.
The SCC yesterday approved a less dramatic rate hike for Dominion customers’ base rates. According to the final order, the approved base rate increase will raise the average Dominion household’s monthly bill by about $11.24 in 2026 and another $2.36 in 2027. The SCC will approve additional changes to the fuel costs customers pay in a separate proceeding. Dominion customers experienced an interim fuel cost increase of $8.51/month starting this past July.
The SCC also approved raising Dominion’s profit rate. Several consumer advocates and major power users — including Clean Virginia, the Virginia Poverty Law Center, the Attorney General’s office, Walmart, and large data centers — presented evidence that Dominion could run safely and reliably with a lower profit. Only Dominion and the SCC’s staff supported raising Dominion’s profit.
“Yesterday’s decision shows why Virginia urgently needs a utility system that puts people first,” said Brennan Gilmore, Executive Director of Clean Virginia. “We’re glad the SCC rejected Dominion’s push for an even larger rate hike. But Dominion’s profit is still going up while Virginians are facing higher costs across the board.”
The order also signals some progress toward addressing the impacts of rapid data center growth on families and businesses. Virginia is now home to hundreds of data centers, and many more are proposed. These facilities use huge amounts of electricity. According to some projections, new demand from data centers could double or even triple Virginia’s total electric demand. Increased energy demand from data centers has prompted Dominion to propose several new fossil fuel projects — like the $8.05 billion Chesterfield gas plant — and other expensive infrastructure. Experts say data center growth in Virginia is likely to drive up energy costs for everyone.
The SCC took a first step toward protecting customers from increasing risks related to data centers, approving a High-Load customer class and measures to ensure these large customers pay their monthly bills. The SCC did not, though, require data centers to pay the full costs of projects constructed to serve them. The SCC also recognized that Dominion’s current method for dividing costs among different types of customers may no longer be the fairest method for ratepayers. Yet instead of acting now, the SCC asked Dominion to bring back a plan for transitioning to a new method in its next rate case — two years from now. This delay means families may keep paying more while big data centers avoid their fair share.
“This decision highlights a bigger systemic problem,” Gilmore said. “Our current rules don’t work in a world where data centers are rapidly changing our entire energy system. Dominion is planning massive new projects, and families are already stretched thin. Virginia needs major reforms to make sure monopoly utilities earn only what is fair and that customers aren’t stuck with unnecessary costs. This problem requires urgent action by Virginia’s elected leaders.”
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Clean Virginia is a 501(c)4 independent advocacy organization with an associated Political Action Committee, Clean Virginia Fund. Clean Virginia works to fight corruption in Virginia politics in order to promote clean and affordable energy. We are motivated by the core belief that our democracy should serve everyday Virginians over special interests.