Dominion Energy's Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind Project Achieves Another Major Milestone

Dominion Energy's Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind (CVOW) received a favorable Record of Decision from the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM). The project is on-time and on budget with onshore construction commencing later this year.

This is the last major milestone before BOEM approves the Construction and Operations Plan, which authorizes construction to begin offshore. The 2.6-gigawatt CVOW project will generate enough clean, renewable energy to power up to 660,000 homes once fully constructed in late 2026 and satisfy the mandates the 2020 Virginia Clean Economy Act. CVOW is expected to generate fuel savings of $3 billion for customers during the project's first 10 years of operation.

The Record of Decision summarizes the findings of the Final Environmental Impact Statement and incorporates extensive studies, evaluations, and designs and responds to public comments to maximize CVOW's environmental benefits and minimize potential impacts. The Record of Decision includes actions taken offshore to minimize impacts to marine life, such as North Atlantic right whales, and actions taken onshore to design and build a transmission route that avoids impacts to natural and cultural resources and communities to the maximum extent possible.

Dominion Energy also worked with a broad range of stakeholders, including state and federal agencies, Tribal Nations, industry groups, and environmental justice communities to avoid, minimize, and mitigate potential impacts.

Virginia Offshore Wind

Offshore wind's economic development and jobs benefits are transformative for Hampton Roads and the Commonwealth. More than 750 Virginia-based workers – nearly 530 in the Hampton Roads region – have been engaged on the CVOW project or with other businesses supporting CVOW, including redevelopment work at the Portsmouth Marine Terminal, construction of the offshore wind Monitoring and Coordination Center, maritime provisioning, ship repairs, heavy lift and rigging, cyber security, food service and hospitality. More than 1,000 local jobs will be needed to support ongoing operations and maintenance of this facility after the project is commercial.