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This is a living document which will be updated throughout the stakeholder engagement process. New and additional questions will be sorted by topic and added in the relevant sections below.
Last updated January 10, 2023
Dominion Energy is committed to investing in our infrastructure to meet the increasing demand for energy in the communities we serve. Part of this commitment includes ensuring our electrical infrastructure—including wires, transformers, substations, poles, and other necessary equipment—delivers power safely and efficiently to your home or business. The Blackwell Road Project is being developed by Dominion Energy to address growth in the Warrenton area of Fauquier County. The timing of this project is driven by a service request from a large customer site that is being planned near the intersection of Blackwell Road and Lee Highway. The project team is in the process of evaluating different potential electrical solutions, and seeking public input on aspects of these preliminary plans before submitting an application to the State Corporation Commission for consideration.
Not at this time. The driver of this project is to serve the load request Dominion received from a customer, pending approval from local government regulatory processes. That being said, new or additional transmission infrastructure serves a broader area by providing additional reliability and operational flexibility. There is an existing capacity issue at the Warrenton Substation, which is the only source of power for a large and growing community. The planned data center accelerates the need for an infrastructure solution.
The updated proposed solution includes an off-site substation location to serve the data center customer at Blackwell Road. Two parcels are being evaluated as potential sites for a substation. One parcel is off of Falmouth Street, requiring a short transmission line span of approximately 0.5 miles. The other parcel under consideration is closer to the existing transmission line, which may reduce the need for transmission line structures while adding more underground distribution line distance.
No, the proposed routes presented by Dominion Energy from the Wheeler Substation to the proposed Blackwell Substation, as well as the routes from the Warrenton Substation to the
proposed Blackwell Substation, are no longer under consideration. Dominion Energy is no longer proposing an on-site substation to serve the customer at the intersection of Blackwell Road and Lee Highway.
There are two types of lines that carry power from the generation source to your home and business –electric transmission and electric distribution lines. The lines look different and serve different functions. Bulk electricity is generated at a power station and transported most efficiently via high voltage transmission lines to a local substation. At the substation, voltage is lowered and electricity can be dispatched through a maze of distribution lines to power an entire community. Please visit our Powerline 101 site for a video that helps illustrate the differences between transmission and distribution voltages and the unique requirements of each.
All of the solutions currently being evaluated involve predominantly underground construction of distribution circuits. Two parcels are being evaluated as potential sites for a substation. One parcel is off of Falmouth Street, requiring a short, overhead transmission line span of approximately 0.5 miles. The other parcel under consideration is closer to the existing transmission line, which may reduce the need for transmission line structures while adding more underground distribution line distance.
Routes for any new linear facilities are developed in sequential phases beginning with a desktop review of existing features and constraints, such as cultural or environmentally sensitive or protected areas, and other land uses such as residences, schools, and parks. Routing is an iterative process that first considers existing opportunities for co-locating along existing corridors, such as roadways or other linear easements. The team will explore any electrically viable option, then narrow down to the preferred options. The evaluation will include a quantitative analysis based on our routing criteria as well as other factors. Dominion Energy relies on input from the public, regulatory agencies and other key stakeholders to determine an appropriate solution that will meet the need of the project while minimizing environmental impacts.
Right now, the newly proposed electrical approach is still in its preliminary stage. Dominion Energy’s electric distribution team is still evaluating the in-road, underground construction method. We will continue to work with the community to share construction and related updates at upcoming community meetings and on our website, www.dominionenergy.com/blackwellroad.
Work will only commence once all state and local permits are in place. Based on our current plans, construction would start sometime in 2024. Additional clarity can be provided as we progress through the permitting process.
Dominion Energy sets the SCC filing date. We pushed our original filing date from the fall of 2022 to the first quarter of 2023 in order to re-evaluate a new approach. We are still planning robust public engagement, including virtual and in-person meetings, sharing revised maps and continuing our ongoing engagement with the community and our partners at the Town of Warrenton and Fauquier County. If we are not ready to submit a filing in the first quarter of 2023, we will consider moving the date out to a time when we have completed our reviews and community engagement.
In-road construction would typically require a 30'–40' easement. Traffic would be rerouted from one side of the road first, and then the other to complete the work. Dominion Energy works closely with VDOT and local partners prior to detouring or closing roads to the public. These detours and closures are communicated by Dominion Energy to area residents in advance of project-related work. Dominion Energy is committed to working with town and county partners to minimize delays and related construction inconveniences. We will adhere to town ordinances and work within our permitted hours and other restrictions. We will maintain our community presence as well as our website and powerline communications portal throughout construction.
Dominion has collected a significant amount of input from residents and continues this effort to better understand the many different local constraints that may not have been perceptible using only desktop analysis. At this time, all routes published so far are preliminary and subject to change; however, Dominion Energy prefers the Falmouth site because of the size of the property and access into and out of the site. That said, we will continue to work with our partners at the county level to evaluate what is possible with regard to the county-owned parcel.
We are continuing to explore the possibility of an underground easement along the 15/29 corridor with VDOT. However, there are several known considerations in that area that may preclude us from burying underground lines there. There is a known contamination issue in the Frytown community; drainfield issues; and space constraints for access roads. We will continue to coordinate with VDOT to see if there are alternate options in that area to consider.
Routing is an iterative process that first considers existing opportunities for co-locating along existing corridors, such as roadways or other linear easements. The team will explore any electrically viable option then narrow down to the preferred routing options by assessing impacts to existing features such as cultural or environmentally sensitive or protected areas, and other land uses such as residences. The evaluation will include a quantitative analysis based on our routing criteria as well as other factors.
For all of the routing scenarios being evaluated, the lines will predominantly be buried underground, under public roadways. There will likely be a few overhead transmission structures and spans closest to the existing overhead lines behind Dominion Energy’s existing Warrenton office on Meetze Rd. We will continue to work with our town and county partners as well as members of the community to better understand local priorities and constraints within the study area. As we have been doing for months, we will meet with private property owners along the different routes as requested.
The new electrical solutions under consideration are primarily underground circuits that will be constructed in-road. Engineering for the short, 0.5 mile span of overhead transmission is still being developed. Typical 230kV transmission line construction is dependent upon right of way requirements. They can be constructed of weathering steel, which turns dark brown over time or galvanized steel, which is a pale, dull gray. Examples of galvanized steel, double-circuit monopoles carrying 230 kV lines can be seen today off Meetze Road in Warrenton, behind the local Dominion office, and extending to the Warrenton Substation, which sits next to the Central Sports Complex. These structures vary in height, between 85-130' tall, and each structure holds a total of 8 wires—two sets of 3-phase circuits, plus lightning arrestors at the very top.
In-road, underground distribution would require a 30'– 40' easement.
In-road construction would require a 30'– 40' easement. Traffic would be rerouted from one side of the road, and then the other to complete. Dominion Energy works closely with VDOT or the locality prior to detouring or closing roads to the public. These detours and closures are communicated by Dominion Energy to area residents in advance of project-related work.
The new substation will have enough capacity to serve the data center customer and other electricity users across the community. Having a second source of power provides greater reliability for the community, and improved operational flexibility when needed during outages.
We have no plans to do so at this time, however, we are legally obligated to serve our customers when requests are made.
Any transmission structures require SCC review; the 0.5 mile span from the Falmouth property would require SCC review. Any distribution lines and the substation are subject to town permitting.
The customer sets a target in-service date.
Yes, the 0.5 mile transmission line from Falmouth would tap into existing overhead lines, crossing from county jurisdiction to town jurisdiction on the west side of Rt. 29, as it enters the Falmouth substation.
The substation SUP will be filed by Dominion Energy.
This project is being driven by a load request submitted by the customer. If the customer’s SUP is denied, this project is no longer needed.
The customer will pay for the underground distribution portion of the project. The substation will be paid by customers across the Commonwealth of Virginia.
Dominion Energy is fully responsible for the construction, operations and maintenance of our facilities. During construction, Dominion Energy has a hotline to submit claims for property damage.
Substations are designed to lower transmission line voltage to distribution level voltage to power homes, businesses, schools, hospitals, etc. They are not only required for data centers.
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