RICHMOND, Va., July 30, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Beginning
Sept. 1, Dominion Virginia Power will
expand its EnergyShare program in both funding and scope to provide
financial assistance, weatherization services and educational
outreach to more qualifying customers, including people living with
disabilities and military veterans facing financial hardships.
"As a provider of an essential service, we know that many of our
customers struggle to pay for basic necessities, including energy,"
said Thomas F. Farrell II, chairman,
president and chief executive officer of Dominion Resources, parent
company of Dominion Virginia Power. "We're making a commitment to
invest $57 million through 2019 to
help more people get help with energy bills. In addition, we will
be offering free weatherization services and outreach to help our
customers reduce energy costs going forward."
The initiative to reduce energy costs for Virginia's most
vulnerable residents came out of legislation passed by the Virginia
General Assembly and an executive directive by Gov. Terry McAuliffe in February 2015. Since then, Dominion has worked
hand-in-hand with more than 30 state agencies, non-profit
organizations and other experts for guidance on how to best
implement the program.
"I am pleased to see the result of this cooperative effort
between legislators, private companies and state agencies to
provide help to many deserving individuals and families across the
Commonwealth," Gov. McAuliffe said. "In particular, it's fulfilling
to extend this important service to multi-family residences and to
brave veterans who, in many cases, return stateside to face
unemployment and homelessness."
EnergyShare will remain a program of last resort to help
eligible residents pay heating or cooling bills when all other
forms of assistance have been exhausted. Under the expanded
program, funding and participation are expected to double, and a
new weatherization and outreach component will help recipients make
lasting changes to reduce energy costs for the long term.
Free weatherization assessments and improvements may include
attic insulation, LED lighting, low-flow showerheads, pipe wrap
installation, faucet aerators, furnace fan motors, heat pump and/or
AC tune-ups, and air sealing or duct sealing. Weatherization
services will be provided by the state's weatherization network to
ensure the highest standard of service.
Since EnergyShare's inception in 1982, Dominion Virginia Power
and its customers, employees, retirees and business partners have
contributed more than $67 million and
have helped more than 300,000 individuals and families. With this
newly expanded program, Dominion hopes to reach 10,000 participants
a year with energy assistance and provide weatherization to
2,600-5,300 dwellings each year, including single-family homes,
mobile homes and multi-family units.
Under the new program, donations will still be accepted and used
to help elderly and low-income residents who face financial
hardship and need assistance with energy bills. Because Dominion
covers 100 percent of the program's administrative costs, every
cent donated by customers, employees or others goes directly to
helping those in need.
Virginia residents can call 2-1-1 for EnergyShare assistance or
referrals to health and human services resources. For more
information about weatherization, call 1-888-366-8280.
For details on how to donate or apply for EnergyShare, as well
as a list of participating agencies, visit www.dom.com and search:
EnergyShare.
Dominion Virginia Power is a
subsidiary of Dominion (NYSE: D), one of the nation's largest
producers and transporters of energy with operations in 14 states.
Dominion has a portfolio of approximately 20,400 megawatts of
generation and 6,455 miles of electric transmission lines, and
operates one of the nation's largest natural gas storage systems
with 928 billion cubic feet of storage capacity and serves utility
and retail energy customers in 13 states. For more information
about Dominion, visit the company's website
at www.dom.com/.
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SOURCE Dominion Virginia Power