Big development projects get electric bill break [Video]

Wooing Virginia development projects for the kind of growth that generates scores of jobs and millions of dollars of new investments can sometimes mean millions of dollars of breaks on electric bills.

In Virginia, such projects received some $24 million worth of discounts on utility bills since Dominion Energy’s launch of an incentive program nine years ago, according to a Richmond Times-Dispatch analysis of State Corporation Commission filings.

The discounts come through Dominion Energy‘s Rider EDR-economic development rate program, which the SCC approved in 2015. EDR stands for economic development rate.

The filings do not disclose the recipients, and Dominion said their names are confidential customer information.

The program “helps make Virginia competitive to attract businesses and helps generate economic development opportunities for the commonwealth, which benefits all residents through job creation and increased economic activity,” said Dominion spokesman Jeremy Slayton.