Dominion Energy, Facebook Recognize Earth Day with Announcement to Expand Solar Generation

- Six new solar facilities in Virginia and North Carolina operational by mid-2020

- Adding 590 megawatts of new renewable energy generation, enough to power more than 147,000 homes at peak output

- Dominion Energy committed to meeting renewable energy needs of customers

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Apr 22, 2019, 11:05 ET

RICHMOND, Va., April 22, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Dominion Energy and Facebook continue their joint effort to substantially increase renewable energy generation by announcing today the addition of six new solar facilities that will be dedicated to Facebook. This partnership will support Dominion Energy's goal of having 3,000 megawatts (MW) of new solar and wind energy in operation or under development by 2022; and Facebook's goal of supporting their global operations with 100 percent renewable energy by the end of 2020.

The solar projects will be built in Dominion Energy's service area in Virginia and North Carolina and will gradually come operational by mid-2020. These six facilities are in addition to the two previously announced solar projects in Surry County, Va., – Colonial Trail West and Spring Grove 1 – which total 240 MW and were recently approved by the Virginia State Corporation Commission.

"Facebook has consistently supported the development of green energy around the world, and their corporate sustainability goals are a driving force in the expansion of renewable energy," said Keith Windle, Dominion Energy's vice president of Business Development. "We are proud to be a trusted energy partner as we actively grow the market for clean energy."

"We are thrilled to be able to partner with Dominion Energy to support our operations with new renewable energy resources and bring additional investment to the region," said Bobby Hollis, head of Global Energy and Site Selection at Facebook. "We look forward to continuing to partner together to further grow the clean energy market and encourage others to power their operations with renewable resources."

The new projects (totaling 350 MW) are:

20 MW Montross Solar in Westmoreland County, Va. (completed)
20 MW Gloucester Solar in Gloucester, Va. (completed)
80 MW Grasshopper Solar in Mecklenburg, Va.
75 MW Chestnut Solar in Halifax County, N.C.
75 MW Pecan Solar in Northampton County, N.C. (completed)
80 MW Gutenberg Solar in Northampton County, N.C.

Dominion Energy developed Montross Solar and the other projects have or will be acquired from EDF Renewables, Inc., BayWa r.e. Solar Projects LLC, and Strata Solar.

Dominion Energy is committed to seeking innovative solutions to meet the needs of small businesses and major corporations like Facebook. From the federal government to the private sector, Dominion Energy creates special programs and works with state regulators to develop tariffs to help its customers achieve their renewable energy objectives.

Today, Dominion Energy has more than 30 solar facilities totaling 884 MW of solar generation operational or under development in the Commonwealth – enough energy to power more than 220,000 homes at peak output. The company now owns the fourth-largest solar fleet among utility holding companies in the nation, and operates nuclear units that provide carbon-free generation to supplement solar when the sun is not shining.

About Dominion Energy
Nearly 7.5 million customers in 18 states energize their homes and businesses with electricity or natural gas from Dominion Energy (NYSE: D), headquartered in Richmond, Va. The company is committed to sustainable, reliable, affordable and safe energy and is one of the nation's largest producers and transporters of energy with about $100 billion of assets providing electric generation, transmission and distribution, as well as natural gas storage, transmission, distribution and import/export services. The company expects to cut generating fleet carbon dioxide emissions 80 percent by 2050 and reduce methane emissions from its gas assets 50 percent by 2030. Please visit www.DominionEnergy.com to learn more.

SOURCE Dominion Energy