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A few passing clouds. Low 57F. Winds light and variable..
A few passing clouds. Low 57F. Winds light and variable.
Dominion Energy 230kV transmission lines connecting the Remington and Warrenton substations traverse the Edgewood residential subdivision near Bealeton.
Dominion Energy spokesman Stephen Precker addresses the Fauquier County Board of Supervisors during a July 14 work session.
Dominion Energy 230kV transmission lines connecting the Remington and Warrenton substations traverse the Edgewood residential subdivision near Bealeton.
For the first time, a Dominion Energy representative indicated that new transmission lines and a new substation in the town of Warrenton may not be necessary to supply electricity to a proposed Amazon data center. A substation already in operation outside of town may suffice if land can be found to expand that existing facility, Dominion spokesman Stephen Precker told county supervisors Sept. 8.
The Warrenton Substation, located on Old Auburn Road outside of town limits, could be expanded to accommodate the data center’s energy demands if more land around the substation could be found, said Precker. There is enough electrical current at the existing substation to serve the proposed Amazon data center, he said, but the substation has run out of space to connect the distribution lines necessary to power the data center.
Dominion Energy spokesman Stephen Precker addresses the Fauquier County Board of Supervisors during a July 14 work session.
Precker noted that two of the county’s three existing data centers, located at the federal Warrenton Training Center outside Warrenton, receive power through the Warrenton Substation. “There are no more spaces, essentially, in the Warrenton Substation to pull distribution from,” Precker said. The Wheeler Substation, in western Prince William County, is connected to the county’s third data center, which is located in Vint Hill.
In response to follow-up questions sent by email by the Fauquier Times, Precker gave a series of sometimes contradictory statements and refused to confirm whether Dominion has taken any concrete steps to explore simply expanding the existing Warrenton Substation instead of building a new substation on Blackwell Road — along with the new transmission lines necessary to connect it to the existing grid.
For instance, he wrote that, “Given easements and other property constraints, purchasing land around the existing substation was considered but determined as not viable options” for supplying power to the Amazon data center.
Precker wrote at another point in the exchange, however, that “Hearing the discussion at today's [board of supervisors] meeting, we are happy to talk with the county and other property owners to evaluate the possibility of future expansion” of the Warrenton Substation.
When pressed, Precker refused to say whether Dominion had contacted the owners of the land — much of it already zoned for industrial development — in the area immediately surrounding the Warrenton Substation to ask about acquiring land for a new or expanded substation to provide power to the Amazon facility.
There is, for instance, a vacant 17-acre industrial-zoned parcel on Meetze Road located directly adjacent to the existing transmission line and next to a Dominion-owned complex, but Precker did not say whether Dominion had made any effort to consider that or any other nearby parcel for expanded substation infrastructure.
Despite his earlier comments to supervisors that the Warrenton Substation could power the Amazon data center if its physical footprint was expanded, Precker later refused to confirm that a substation need not be located next to the Amazon data center. “Based on community feedback we’ve continued to learn throughout our process, we’re still evaluating all electrical options,” he wrote, while repeatedly refusing to answer questions in specific terms.
The two data centers located at the Warrenton Training Center are — in a straight line — approximately 4 miles from the Warrenton Substation from which they are powered, though the actual distribution line route is much longer since it circumvents the town of Warrenton. The proposed Amazon facility is closer, just 2.5 miles from the Warrenton Substation.
Dominion representatives, including Precker, have indicated since the Amazon application became public that new transmission lines and a new substation located directly adjacent to the data center would be necessary if Amazon’s proposal is approved. One set of options developed by the company would connect the new substation to the Wheeler Substation; another would connect the Blackwell Road site to the Warrenton Substation. That plan has faced fierce and organized opposition from area residents and activist groups.
Citing that opposition, Precker also told supervisors that the company has decided to delay submitting routing options for the proposed transmission lines and substation to the State Corporation Commission, which has sole jurisdiction over utility infrastructure routing. Dominion had originally planned to file an SCC application this month but will instead wait until early next year, he said. The company will take the extra time to study the proposed routes further and to conduct additional public outreach, Precker added.
Transmission lines, typically strung from steel towers exceeding 100 feet, carry electric current from power stations to substations — or from one substation to another. After the electricity is routed through a substation, much smaller distribution lines — usually located on wooden poles or underground — carry the electricity to homes and businesses.
The prospect of transmission lines through New Baltimore, Fauquier County’s highest-income region, have met the most organized opposition. Some residents and activist groups claim, among other objections, that new overhead lines would reduce home values in the area.
Supervisors passed a resolution this summer asking the Virginia General Assembly to require Dominion to bury any new transmission lines servicing the proposed Blackwell Road Substation. If the legislature does not pass a special law applying to the Warrenton/Fauquier County project, the SCC will determine not only what route the transmission lines will take, it will also dictate whether the lines would be underground or overhead.
Southern Fauquier County has been traversed by several major transmission line corridors for decades, and two natural gas power plants — served by two natural gas pipelines that also cross the county — are located in the Remington area, the county’s lowest-income region. Of the roughly 54 miles of transmission line corridors located in the county, 52 miles are located south of Warrenton. The remaining two miles are located just south of the Loudoun County border.
The Warrenton Planning Commission is currently considering Amazon’s data center application and will meet later this month to further discuss the proposal. After a vote by the commission, which is not binding, the proposal will go to the Warrenton Town Council for final consideration.
Since the data center proposal is a town zoning matter, county supervisors have no say in whether Amazon’s application is approved.
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