Virginia's energy consumption

Summary: Virginia produces coal and natural gas and has ample resources for generating hydropower. Two nuclear power plants generate a third of total electricity generated in the state.

The first, permanent settlement in what would become the United States of America was established in Jamestown, Virginia, in 1607, and the state has historically been known as the Mother of Presidents because eight presidents were born there, including four of the first five men to hold that office. Located in the South and bordering on the Atlantic Ocean and the nation’s capital, Washington, DC, Virginia spans an area of 42,769 square miles.

Virginia has a wealth of water sources for generating hydropower; water covers 3,171 square miles of the state. The major rivers are the James, the Rappahannock, the Potomac, and the Shenandoah. The major lakes and waterways are the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway, Lake Moomaw (with Gathright Dam), John H. Kerr Reservoir, John W. Flannagan Reservoir, Pound Lake, and Philpott Lake. Utility-scale hydropower sources generated 130 thousand megawatt-hours of electricity in June 2017 alone, and Virginia employs both conventional hydroelectric generators and pumped-storage generators to produce hydroelectricity. Electricity is also imported into Virginia through transmission lines.

The coal mines of Virginia generate some 2 percent of all coal produced east of the Mississippi River in 2022. Nevertheless, Virginia imports both natural gas and petroleum because consumption outstrips domestic production. The state's natural gas sector has grown significantly, climbing from less than 20 million cubic feet in 1970 to 82.8 billion cubic feet in 2023. In 2022, 7,974 wells were producing natural gas in Virginia. Virginia has a number of coal-bed methane fields, and two of them are among the top hundred in the United States.

Approximately one-third of electricity generated in Virginia comes from two nuclear plants, and the required nuclear fuel must be imported from outside sources. Two commercial nuclear reactors are located in Surry County and two in North Anna. According to the Nuclear Energy Institute, each Surry reactor has a 838 megawatt (MW) capacity while one North Anna reactor can produce 948 MW and the other, 944 MW.

Public education and financial incentives are being used to promote the use of clean energy, and Virginia has great potential for developing its wind power capacity and expanding the use of hydropower. In 2022, 11 percent of its electricity came from renewable energy sources. The state announced ambitious goals for the future in 2019. According to these milestones, by 2028, the state would have 5,500 megawatt-hours of wind and solar energy, and by 2030, 30 percent of Virginia's electric system would be powered by renewable energy sources. By 2050, 100 percent of Virginia's electricity would be produced by carbon-free sources, such as wind, solar, and nuclear.

In 2015, Virginia consumed 283 million British thermal units (Btu) of energy per person, and each Virginian produced an average of 104 million metric tons of carbon dioxide the preceding year. Much of the energy used in Virginia is expended through the generation of electricity, and about 40 percent of all electricity is generated by gas-powered plants.

In 2022, 54 percent of Virginia's electricity came from natural gas, 31 percent stemmed from nuclear power, 11 percent came from renewables, and 4 percent was generated from coal.

Twenty-First-Century Reforms

The need to reduce its carbon footprint and the push toward using alternative and renewable forms of energy have encouraged Virginia to place a new emphasis on clean energy technologies. The state has a long history of using wind power to pull water up from wells, and wind power was used in manufacturing long before electricity became the primary source of energy.

Virginia has no utility-scale wind turbines in operation. However, there is great potential for wind power in the state. There is great potential for further utilizing wind power in Virginia itself. Virginia is one of the states bordering on the Atlantic Ocean that has been identified as having readily available sources for generating wind energy. According to the Virginia Clean Energy Act of 2020, the state should have 16,100 megawatts of solar power and onshore wind and up to 5,200 megawatts of offshore wind by 2035.

Studies conducted by the US Department of Energy (DOE) and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) suggest that the most desirable locations for wind turbines are along the Delmarva Peninsula, in the Virginia Beach area, and along the borders that Virginia shares with West Virginia and North Carolina.

The State of Virginia offers rebates to residents who replace outdated appliances with newer energy-saving models. The state also offers rebates to those who install renewable energy generators, offering financial assistance through the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant Program, the Biomass Energy Grants Program, the Solar and Wind Incentive Program, the State Facilities Renewable Energy Grants Program, and the Local Government and School Facility Renewable Energy Utilization Program.

Bibliography

Barnes, Roland V., ed. Energy Crisis in America? Huntington, NY: Nova Science, 2001.

"Virginia." US Energy Information Administration, 2022, www.eia.gov/state/?sid=VA. Accessed 12 Aug. 2024.

Virginia Places. “Energy in Virginia.” www.virginiaplaces.org/energy/index.html. Accessed 12 Aug. 2024.