NEWS: Joshua Falls - Yeat Project Would Strengthen Energy in Central, Northern Virginia
A joint venture involving Dominion, FirstEnergy, and American Electric Power would run 765 KV line between Campbell and Culpeper counties.
By Martin Davis
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
Email Martin
The recent winter storm was notable for a number of things. One that might have been overlooked is that it was the longest period of sustained extreme cold in our region since the 1940s, according to Craig Carper and Robert Richardson with Dominion Energy.
In a video conference call with the Advance Thursday afternoon, they said that during that three-week stretch of cold, the company set eight out of its 10 all-time peak records. It’s just one example of the growing pressure being placed on power companies.
“Population growth, electrification, and expanding economic activity plus data centers” are forcing electric companies to generate more power, Richardson said.
How much more?
“It took [Dominion] 100 years to get to 20,000 MWs,” he continued, but by 2035 we’re going to double that. That’s the load that customers are using. It’s the biggest load jump since WWII.”
A key to addressing all that growth is a new joint venture between American Electric Power, Dominion, and FirstEnergy called the Joshua Falls-Yeat project.
Approved by PJM, a regional transmission organization (RTO) that coordinates the movement of wholesale electricity in all or parts of 13 states and the District of Columbia, last February, the project will run a 115-mile long new 765 KV transmission line between Campbell County and Culpeper County.
The largest lines that Dominion currently operates are 500 KV transmission lines. AEP previously ran 765 KV lines through Ohio, West Virginia, and the western Appalachian spine in the 1970s.
These 765 KV lines require larger structures to carry them. For example, the towers that carry 500 KV lines are typically between 115 feet and 135 feet tall; 765 KV lines require towers that are 135 feet to 160 feet tall.
They also require more right of way. Whereas 500 KV lines typically have 150 feet of right of way, 765 KV lines require 200 feet.
“There is an excess of [power] generation in western PJM,” Richardson told the Advance. The Joshua Falls-Yeat project will improve Dominion’s ability to bring energy to central and northern Virginia.
Building an Electric Highway
Richardson uses a road analogy to describe the new lines. The 765 KV lines, he said, are “the interstate highways of electric transmission.” The 500 KV lines Dominion currently operates, he continued, are akin “to Route 1.:
“We have a 500 KV corridor at North Anna,” Richardson said, that the 765 KV line will feed. The 765 KV line will also “take power north and east, and to the Kraken Loop.”
Currently, there are two proposed pathways that run roughly parallel to one another between Campbell and Culpeper. The line would come through the western edge of Spotsylvania.
To identify the best pathways for the line, Richardson said the company “evaluated 12,000 miles for a 115-mile project. … We’re trying to achieve the best route with the least amount of impact to historic and natural resources and dense residential communities. We are also limiting lake, stream, and river crossings and keeping the lines away from schools.”
Dominion is now beginning the public-input process and expects that the corridors will change as a result of these interactions.
Dominion is hosting nine in-person and two virtual meetings starting in early March - one meeting in every county where the new transmission line will cross.
Richardson said that Dominion has sent 120,000 letters inviting people and will follow-up with 120,000 postcards to ensure that people are aware of the meetings.
Once the public portion of the project is completed, the proposal will be moved to Virginia State Corporation Commission for final approval. That process takes about a year, and Dominion anticipates the project will come on-line toward the end of 2029.
As for landowners affected by the new 765 KV line, Dominion said that it is committed to doing right by them.
Dominion will first seek voluntary easements with fair compensation to the land-owners, and Richardson said Dominion will communicate directly with them.
“Eminent domain will be used only as a last resort,” Richardson said.
Potential Issue
The Piedmont Environmental Council is working to create the Rapidan River–Clark Mountain Rural Historic District, a “nearly 40,000-acre historic landscape in Orange County and parts of Madison and Culpeper Counties,” according to reporting by Hillary Holladay of Byrd Street.
The PEC lists three projected benefits of the district if it’s approved, but, according to Holladay:
It is the third anticipated benefit, however, that fairly jumps off the screen: “Virginia Code requires the SCC [State Corporation Commission] to minimize impacts to historic districts when siting transmission lines.” With power companies ramping up construction to accommodate burgeoning electrical demands (think data centers), the threat of unsightly towers and endless electric lines has become an increasing source of concern in and all around the village of Rapidan. The PEC page on transmission proposals geared toward data centers is revelatory.
As of this writing, it is not clear to what extent, if any, the proposed historical district would interfere with the Joshua Falls - Yeat project.
Local Obituaries
To view local obituaries or to send a note to family and loved ones, please visit the link that follows.
