Last week, the Northumberland Board of Supervisors heard from representatives of Dominion Energy and Northern Neck Electric Cooperative (NNEC) amid residents’ concerns about high energy bills.

Reagen Fakhoury, an external affairs representative for Dominion Energy, said changes in customer bills are partly driven by riders, —the portion customers pay toward Dominion’s programs and projects.

“With regards to wind and solar, why are you paying for that?” Fakhoury asked. He did not directly answer the question, instead emphasizing the role of the State Corporation Commission (SCC). What’s important is to know the SCC reviews and deems Dominion projects critical, and they do an annual review of the projects and riders to ensure they are just and reasonable, he said.

Board Chairman James Brann questioned why customers are paying for renewable energy projects that have already received federal funding.

“Again, I want to preface this by saying I’m not a rates case expert,” Fakhoury said. “I’m not a State Corporation Commission expert… In terms of how it comes down federally, I can probably follow up with some additional information on that. I don’t touch anything on the federal level or would even dare to with you gentlemen this evening.”

Dominion also implemented a base rate increase on Jan. 1. Fakhoury said the average residential customer will see an increase of about $11.24 per month this year, based on 1,000 kilowatt-hours of usage. “A little bit of fair warning.” an additional $2.36 monthly increase is scheduled in 2027, he added.

Fakhoury reiterated during that discussion that a $200 bill in October 2025 would rise to just over $211 in October 2026 and roughly $213 next year.

He attributed higher the rate increase to rising labor, materials and equipment costs, as well as required investments under the Grid Security and Transformation Act of 2018 and the need to meet growing energy demand.

“It’s estimated that the infrastructure that took us 100 years, we need to do it in 10,” he said. “So that’s quite a challenge, and the SCC is part of that push to get us there.”

Supervisor Chip Williams how data centers factor into the higher costs.

“In terms of billing, data centers aren’t the reason why your bills were higher this month or last month or previous,” Fakhoury said. “That has no impact on the situation.”

He added that Dominion also continues to invest in reliability. “We don’t have brownouts. We don’t have blackouts,” he said.

Representatives from both utilities pointed to colder-than-normal winter weather as a major factor behind recent bill increases suggesting that people were likely using more power than typical.

Jim Robertson, NNEC’s public relations manager, said the cooperative is “a not-forprofit business” and has not raised rates in several years. Year-over-year comparisons showed most bill changes ranging from a few cents to as much as $30 to $40, depending on usage.

“Heating and cooling will account for half of your bill in a residential home,” Robertson said.

He said colder temperatures significantly increase energy demand. As outdoor temperatures drop, heating systems must work harder and longer to maintain indoor comfort, often triggering auxiliary heat systems.

For example, if it’s 45 degrees outside, a system must generate 25 degrees of heat to reach 70 indoors. If it drops to 25 degrees, the system must generate 45 degrees. This winter saw even more extreme lows—down to 10 or 15 degrees, he noted.

“Now you’re looking at trying to add 50 to 70 degrees difference in the home, depending on where you have your thermostat,” he said. “So that causes your HVAC system to run harder, longer. It causes the auxiliary heat to kick in.”

Once temperatures fall below freezing, heat pumps automatically switch modes, which can increase energy use unless a home has a dual heating system.

Robertson said proper insulation and weatherization are key to reducing costs.

“Little steps can save you a ton of money,” he said.

“Every degree you lower the temperature on your thermostat, you’re going to save about 8% per degree.”

He also cautioned against comparing utility bills on social media.

“This is probably the biggest problem right now—the Facebook community pages,” Robertson said. “People are comparing bills. That’s bad practice because there are too many variables between homes… It’s not healthy, mentally, to compare with other people to see what they’re doing.”

Instead, both utilities encouraged customers to contact service representatives, conduct home energy audits and take advantage of efficiency programs. Dominion offers not only free energy audits but also efficiency kits, as well as programs such as budget billing, the representatives stressed to the board.

Fakhoury and Robertson agreed to host a public education event in Northumberland in September to help residents better understand and manage their energy use.