Dominion merger review draws new scrutiny

One of the first challenges came from Clean Virginia, which asked the commission to declare the application incomplete. It said regulators still lack information needed to fully evaluate the proposal.

The organization said the filing leaves unanswered questions about how the acquisition would be structured, who would control Dominion’s operations and how the transaction could affect Virginia ratepayers.

“The joint petitioners cannot be allowed to start the clock running on an incomplete filing,” Clean Virginia Executive Director Brennan Gilmore said in announcing the motion.

Dominion and NextEra rejected that argument in a July 21 filing, calling Clean Virginia’s motion “substantively meritless.” The companies said their application includes the information required under Virginia law, including the merger agreement, financial information and sworn testimony from company executives.

State Corporation Commission staff agreed on the procedural question in a July 22 filing, recommending the commission deny the motion. Staff wrote that “completeness for filing purposes is a separate issue” from whether the merger should ultimately be approved and said the petition satisfies Virginia’s filing requirements.

Under the commission’s July 21 procedural order, the review will continue on the full 180-day schedule allowed by law, with a final decision due by Jan. 11.

The proceeding has continued to grow. Clean Virginia, the Sierra Club, the Virginia Committee for Fair Utility Rates and the Office of the Attorney General’s Division of Consumer Counsel have all entered appearances, while commissioners have received dozens of written comments from Virginians supporting and opposing the merger.

Outside the formal case, Lt. Gov. Ghazala Hashmi has called for additional scrutiny, submitting 64 questions to the commission and urging regulators to closely examine the merger’s potential effects on electricity rates, reliability, competition and Dominion’s planned data center expansion.

Several Democratic lawmakers have also weighed in. Sen. Schuyler VanValkenburg backed the Spanberger administration’s proposal to require large electricity users, including data centers, to bear more of the transmission costs associated with growing electricity demand rather than shifting those costs to residential customers.

Dominion and NextEra announced the merger in May. The companies say combining their operations will help meet growing electricity demand while keeping Dominion’s Virginia utility under local management and separate state regulation. They expect the transaction to close in early 2027 if regulators approve it.

The SCC is expected to rule by Jan. 11 though the merger also requires approvals from regulators in North Carolina, South Carolina, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission before it can be completed.