US utility Dominion Energy Virginia will be offering residential and business customers the opportunity to use solar energy even without investing in solar panels on their rooftops. These customers will be able to have a portion of their energy needs met by community-based solar facilities fed directly into the Dominion Energy grid. »Some customers may live in apartments or in other rental properties, or may not be in a position to invest in solar panels,« said Paul D. Koonce, president and CEO of Dominion Energy Power Generation. »We have designed a program that will allow these customers to subscribe for some of their energy needs through solar generation.« According to the company, it will soon seek a request for proposal for solar projects to support the program.

Dominion Energy Virginia plans to invest $15 billion or more over a five-year period to enhance, protect and strengthen the power grid to reduce outages, further improve reliability and customer service, and make more renewable energy available. Over the last two years, the company has invested nearly $1 billion to add large-scale universal solar generation serving customers in Virginia and North Carolina. The company has 27 solar facilities totaling 444 MW in operation or under construction in Virginia, up from four projects and 1 megawatt just two years ago. Dominion Energy Virginia's Integrated Resource Plan calls for at least another 5,200 MW of new solar generation by 2042.