Wood Bioenergy | a Hatton-Brown publication

Dominion Virginia Power has received state approval to convert three coal-fired power plants to biomass fuel.

The State Corporation Commission also approved a charge to Dominion customer bills starting April 1 to cover the estimated $165.8 million cost to switch over the plants in Altavista, Hopewell and Southampton County. In it’s filing for the conversion, the company projected that the charge would add 14 cents to the bills of residential customers who use 1,000 kilowatt hours of electricity per month. The amount will differ based on individual household usage.

The plants will burn wood mostly from tree limbs discarded by timber companies and are expected to begin operating in 2013. Each will produce about 51 megawatts of electricity, enough to power 12,500 homes, and run about 90% of the time to serve Dominion’s “base load” of customers.

From renewablesbiz: http://www.renewablesbiz.com/article/12/03/virginia-gives-ok-three-biomass-fuel-plants