Virginia regulators began taking public testimony this week on the proposed $67 billion merger between Dominion Energy and Florida-based NextEra Energy, a deal that would reshape the utility serving Reston's massive data center corridor and every household electric bill in the area.

The State Corporation Commission (SCC) opened in-person and telephone hearings on Nov. 5, first reported by the Virginia Mercury. The all-stock deal would create the world's largest regulated utility, combining more than 10 million customers and 110 gigawatts of power.

The merger has already drawn opposition from Gov. Abigail Spanberger, Attorney General Jay Jones and Lt. Gov. Ghazala Hashmi. SCC staff concluded in an Oct. 19 filing that the companies had not demonstrated the deal would preserve adequate service at just and reasonable rates, as required under Virginia's Utility Transfers Act, the Virginia Mercury reported.

Reston concerns on the record

Fairfax County Hunter Mill District Supervisor Walter Alcorn testified against the merger at an Oct. 9 hearing at the Fairfax County Government Center, according to the Fairfax Independent. He outlined five concerns: electricity affordability, climate commitments, grid reliability, economic growth and local accountability.

Alcorn cited recurring power outages along Lawyers Road, Fox Mill Road and Hunter Mill Road. He stressed the importance of maintaining infrastructure investments to support development in Reston and Tysons, the Fairfax Independent reported. He also questioned whether a Florida-based parent company would maintain Dominion's working relationships with local officials on projects like vegetation management along the W&OD Trail and Reston's RELAC air-conditioning transition.

What the deal offers — and what critics want

Under the latest proposal, residential customers would receive a bill credit of about $10 per month for four years, according to the Virginia Mercury. The revised plan redirected savings originally earmarked for large data center customers in Dominion's GS5 rate class to extend the residential credit from two years to four.

Spanberger's administration filed expert testimony calling for nearly triple that amount: $29 per month in credits and a six-year freeze on residential base rates. Expert witness Robert McCann, testifying for the governor, said a $10 credit "does not provide much confidence when Dominion has already petitioned the Commission to recover more than $10 per month in fuel-related costs this year alone," the Virginia Mercury reported.

The governor's filing also proposed creating a separate Virginia-based subsidiary to develop zero-carbon power generation for large data centers, financially walled off from other customers to prevent those projects from shifting costs onto households.

Dominion and NextEra accepted some SCC staff recommendations but rejected a rate freeze and certain ring-fencing protections, the Virginia Mercury reported Nov. 4.

Data centers draw tech giants into the case

Amazon and Google are formal intervenors in the SCC proceeding. Dominion's interconnection queue for new data center projects stretches about seven years, according to the Virginia Mercury.

Cameron Brooks, testifying on behalf of Amazon Data Services in prefiled testimony, said Dominion's "large-load interconnection study process is not keeping pace with demand," the Virginia Mercury reported.

Virginia legislators learned from industry experts that the proliferation of data centers in Virginia is an attractive draw for companies like NextEra, which want to capitalize on the buildout of energy infrastructure needed to support them, the Virginia Mercury reported.

Dominion spokesman Rayhan Daudani said the merger would provide more than $2.1 billion in near-term customer and community benefits, including bill credits, payment assistance and workforce development, the Virginia Mercury reported. The companies say the deal would create 1,000 new direct jobs in Virginia and maintain current employee headcount for five years.

What happens next

The SCC faces a Jan. 11, 2027, deadline to act on the application under the state's six-month review period. Jones has requested that deadline be reset to account for the revised proposal filed Sept. 14. The commission has not yet ruled on that request.

Written comments will be accepted through Nov. 12. The evidentiary portion of the case begins Nov. 17.