Why promote alternative energy sources when Dominion can strip mountains of coal and build a coal fired power plant in Wise?  The truth is, if coal were found in Alexandria there would be no question that solar and wind would be mandated in this state. Southwest Virginia has no voice in Richmond as long at Phil Puckett and Terry Kilgore are placated by the lobbyists' money in Richmond.  Voters in SWVA need to be represented better in Richmond.

Kaine has been a huge disappointment to me.

Hopefully, next election we can get more Dems into the Assembly and get a Governor that is more environmentally friendly and less Dominion and corporate friendly.

I think we need new energy legislation that is NOT written by Dominion Power.  Many of us in VA are counting our pennies and trying to do alternative energy in our homes.  BUT Dominion doesn't want to pay us for electricity "we" supply to the grid.  

IF we had legislation that "mandated" that Dominion Power had to pay the prevailing market rate for electricity that "we" supply to the grid more of us would be able to "afford" getting our homes off of dirty coal and onto clean wind and solar energy.

We need elected officials who will put forth bills that benefit the citizens not bills written for the corporations such as Dominion Power.

That's the kind of political leadership we need in VA.
Buzz...Buzz...

Decoupling: "Decoupling would remove the disincentive for the utilities to pursue and encourage energy efficiency projects. Instead of having profits that are dependent upon total kilowatt hour produced, the power company rates profits of a certain amount are guaranteed by the state."

Another two words:

Net metering: "Net metering enables customers to use their own generation to offset their consumption over a billing period by allowing their electric meters to turn backwards when they generate electricity in excess of the their demand."

Great point on net metering.  Power generation is only 1/2 the equation.  We also need to reduce consumption.

As for the Governor....we have a Democratic Governor in Virginia?  He must really struggle working with the Majority Leader in the Senate, Republican Dick Saslaw.

That's the reason I have stayed out of all the discussion whenever it appeared and was discussed about on RK.  

Decoupling has been around for a long time.  There has been many attempts at it before, and even in other utility sectors; however, the fact that electric has power systems, a more complex distibution grid, more variables its supply n demand chain, other utilities which have succesfully impliment it can not be compared.  Currently the state of CA is the only state seeing the most progress with it, but as of late, state utilities hit a brick wall and EEC was not really being advanced.  So in 2006, the state mandated that EEC be ranked first on load order when utilities seek new capacity from any source.  Being that only 1 year has passed, the book is still out on its success from that point.  

Some of the opponents against decoupled pricing methods versus sales revenue incentive models, is that proper planning and fair & effective power purchases agreements are hazier.  As we have seen from the energy crisis in CA earlier this decade and more recen in west Texas when the wind stopped blowing, these matters are quite complex and quite real.

However, considering what the current alternative is, it may very well possibly be the best scenario at the moment, and certainly CA, OR, HI, and a few others (I think 6 total) should try and be the nation's test lab.  Its very good to have 50 states independantly working towards the best solutions in this regard, so we as a nation can compare.  

I think that the industry as a whole, or I should say those elements within it looking for the best solution, are waiting for the advancement of a more intelligent grid from the pilot stage to market.  This concept has now left from the federally-funded test lab stage to a real world pilot out in Colorado in the city of Boulder.  There Xcel Energy will utilitize a more time-of-use oriented pricing model, aka dynamic pricing, where the rates are based on supply-n-demand with the implimentation of advanced metering technology.  The aim here is to give customers the ability to pick and choose when to use certain appliances via smart meters and smart switches with the utility.  The choice is given to the customer to control the usage and through price signals ( or not to), or opt to give the control to the utility.  

I have talked about the outdoor a/c smart switch and basically the concept is similar, except that it extends to as many appliances in the house or office which has the ability to have a some sort of time delay usage.  Another example, would be to set your dishwasher ready to run when the best price signal is sent, or cut off power to appliances at a certain time of day to avoid phantom load consumption.  

Dynamic pricing appears it could melt the best of worlds, more natural incentives based on revenues with built-in mechanisms for efficient consumption.  

Check out whites papers by ELCON and EEI.

Was not net metering mandated into law with EISA 2007 and is supported to be supported in all 50 states and by 2009 (?).  

Another key concept the utilities in California have been forced to accept is Distributed Generation, which is the future, not large central fossil fuel plants, but scaled to local demand, often independent of the grid, and fueled by renewables, wind, solar or hydrogen. However in the transition, cogeneration with natural gas is a bridge technology, preferably with cogenernation of electricity and heat for a specific on-site use.
Distributed Generation is described here:

hehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Distributed_generation

One of the best things about DER is that local communities can develop their own energy plan and create their own power supply like some communities in California. Some 25 years ago I was an energy advisor to the Governor of California, and we laid the foundation then for what is now becoming the world's most progressive energy market. Does Tim Kaine even have an energy advisor? besides those utility lobbyists who take him to sporting events?
Just Pathetic. The old ways of energy are out the window Tim, wake up!!!
If you want to see a real energy policy at work go to:
http://www.energy.ca.gov/
California has implementted arguably one of the most progressive energy policies in the world, through Republican and Deocratic administrations. Today,
California has hundreds of DER sites, all indepndent power producers.  Try getting even a hook-up in Virginia for an indendent power producer.
Bottom line--It's going take a whole lot of change to begin getting Virginia/US energy policy right. Does Tim Kaine see the future??

Walmart is pushing this big time.  But w/o the smart grid, its tough to accomplish success in net-metering and advancing DG, as the Walmart of the world, both large and small, would still like to have the security of the grid in place.  Costs for security, reliability, planning, and long-term wholesale purchase agreements are all affected when all of a sudden, everyone wants to supply their own power, but still have the freedom to access power from the electric company.  It doesn't work that way.  

All aspects from EEC & DG from which to reduce demand and free up more capacity to serve growth in base-line and in peak, will find success and wide-scale implimentation with a more intelligent grid.  

See ESIA 2007 section xiii

especially because we should expect something similar from Dominion very soon.

Remember last year Dominion put out an RFP for renewable and EEC generation.  Well about 10 days ago Dominion announced they had received numerous renewable proposals.

When the time is right Dominion will release the news, coinciding of course when it best suits their image.  

The media will splash a big headline for the masses to consume with the Dominion's underlying attempt to show the greater public, they are good for the state and very energy conscious.  

We should expect and prepare now for their announcement, which will undoubtedly come just before something like, before the air quality board is about to announce their permit ruling.  In the wake of both, we all will be scratching our heads.  This the Dominion we should expect.

The problem is that Virginia's "renewable portfolio standard," if you want to call it that, doesn't create an incentives for in-state generation. I saw a copy of AEP's report to the SCC on their renewables plan - they are getting almost all of their load from existing or planned out of state wind.  

No, Dominion is not going to build solar, they are going to purchase wind from wherever they can get it cheapest - somewhere in WV or Indiana.

my comment isn't about anything other then Dominion's likely announcement in the future for renewables.  They did the RFP on renewables because the law now required them.

My point was that Dominion has a habit to announcing favorable news for its overall position and public perception, during times when bigger decisions or events were influencing public perception in the opposite direction.  They maximumize the impact of news favorable to them, by timing it right when it matters the most.  They did this about 3 times during the time when the Nova powerline proposal was first announced, up to the start of the SCC procedures.  

Governor Kaine received over $130,000 in campaign contributions from Dominion Power alone. He certainly is proving that he's the kind of politician that not only you can buy, but he stays bought!!
Certainly no profile in courage for Virginia's environment.