FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 1, 2026
CONTACT
Molly Moore, Director of Program Communications, (828) 278-4076, [email protected]
RICHMOND, Va. — Today, Virginia Governor Abigail Spanberger announced the 2026 Virginia Energy Plan. The scenarios modeled in the plan reveal that maximizing flexibility and minimizing fossil resources will save Virginians billions of dollars over the next two decades, while ensuring reliable electricity service. The plan is supported by technical modeling of different pathways to meet rising electricity demand at least cost while meeting the zero-carbon requirements of current law. Importantly, the governor’s plan analyzes a variety of scenarios that explore increasing levels of distributed energy generation like solar, increased flexibility from large load customers like data centers, and a scenario in which no new gas-fired power plants are built.
Statement from Peter Anderson, Appalachian Voices Director of State Energy Policy:
“The Governor’s Energy Plan is a major step forward for Virginia. For the first time the commonwealth uses technical modeling to guide the policy direction, and the plan places the true societal and public health costs of our energy system front and center. The plan makes clear that load growth from the data center industry is driving difficult tradeoffs for Virginians – even when the Virginia Clean Economy Act is honored – tradeoffs between key factors like economic cost, land use, and public health.
“We thank the governor for this thoughtful plan, and we look forward to working with the administration and the General Assembly on many of the proposed ‘Clean-First, Least-Cost’ solutions going forward.”
