Competition, choice would benefit Virginia energy customers – The Virginian-Pilot

Final month, Gov. Glenn Youngkin launched his energy plan, which requires extra alternative and competitors in how Virginians get their power. A important half is opening entry to retail power suppliers, which would supply aid to customers on the lookout for extra reasonably priced, cleaner and dependable electrical energy. This is able to be an essential step towards creating long-overdue competitors within the commonwealth’s power market and breaking the native utilities’ long-held monopolies.

Presently, residents and companies don’t have a lot alternative in who provides their electrical energy. The state permits solely two utilities — Dominion Power and Appalachian Energy — to ship electrical energy to greater than 90% of Virginians. This outdated mannequin made sense a century in the past when the electrical energy business was new and the federal government needed to make sure its viability. Right now, given the revolutionary applied sciences and companies now accessible from different firms in addition to quickly altering shopper calls for, the present system shouldn’t be solely outdated, it’s unsuited to Virginia’s present and future power wants.

For many years, the 2 dominant utilities supplied little if any power choices, and their monopoly safety disincentivized innovation. They used their market management and political energy to stifle efforts to reform their practices and, even worse, funded marketing campaigns to unfold disinformation. These monopolies shouldn’t be working to thwart Virginia’s progress towards a cleaner, extra reasonably priced power future that’s aligned with particular person prospects’ power wants.

In all facets of their lives, Virginians search tailor-made, reasonably priced power companies that meet the wants of their households. These calls for advanced in recent times, and it’s about time the power business caught up. Electrical energy wants range considerably, and customers need methods to decrease prices whereas rising environmental stewardship. By opening Virginia’s electrical energy market to competitors, customers can have extra energy to decide on their electrical energy supplier and elevated entry to renewable, clear power choices, sensible house merchandise, free hours for house electrical car charging, and entry to their knowledge to assist grow to be a extra knowledgeable shopper. Extra clear power suppliers may even appeal to new companies to the state, which is able to assist to develop Virginia’s clear economic system.

It’s clear that nobody electrical energy supplier can ship all these new instruments and companies, a lot much less ship them in a method that preserves affordability with out undermining reliability. Fortuitously, there are actually many various retail electrical energy suppliers providing cleaner power sources that higher serve the distinctive wants of every household and enterprise. Nonetheless, except the commonwealth takes motion on Youngkin’s plan, Virginians received’t have entry to suppliers that can provide residents not only a alternative in the place their power comes from, but additionally aggressive pricing, and services and products that cut back their power prices.

This strategy is precisely what Virginians need: Two current surveys present they overwhelmingly help extra alternative and competitors within the power market. A 2017 research by Public Opinion Methods and a 2021 SurveyUSA ballot discovered that 88% and 77% of Virginians, respectively, wish to select their electrical energy provider. These excessive marks aren’t that shocking when contemplating how entrenched our utilities have grow to be. This sentiment is a end result of many years of coping with a damaged monopoly system that isn’t held accountable.

The outdated, antiquated power mannequin, during which a pair choose utilities are granted a monopoly over our state’s power wants, is woefully insufficient to the power calls for of the twenty first century. Fortuitously, Youngkin’s plan to open power competitors is a vital step ahead in making Virginia’s electrical energy market work higher for all Virginians. Virginia can and will make that aspect of the plan a actuality. Let’s come collectively and make this state a cleaner, extra vibrant, and extra aggressive place to reside and work. All of us need extra and higher power choices — it’s time to make the swap.

Christopher Ercoli is the president and CEO of the Retail Power Development League (REAL), with headquarters in Washington, D.C.