Virginia Governor Abigail Spanberger announced on August 6 that she will formally intervene in the proposed $67 billion merger between NextEra Energy and Dominion Energy, becoming the first Virginia governor to take such action before the State Corporation Commission. The intervention signals her administration’s determination to scrutinize a deal that would create the world’s largest regulated electric utility and reshape the commonwealth’s energy landscape for decades.
In a Washington Post opinion piece, Spanberger stated she is “deeply skeptical about whether selling our primary, state-regulated utility to an out-of-state company is good for the commonwealth.” The governor’s move comes as Virginia voters increasingly blame data centers for rising electricity costs—a concern that featured prominently in her 2025 gubernatorial campaign.
Dominion and NextEra filed their merger application with the State Corporation Commission on July 15, formally launching a six-month regulatory review period. The State Corporation Commission will decide whether to approve, reject, or impose conditions on the proposed acquisition. Spanberger’s intervention grants her administration legal standing to raise concerns, request detailed information about the deal, and present evidence to the commission.
Spanberger outlined three nonnegotiable priorities that will guide her involvement. First, she demanded that any deal deliver more affordable energy bills with sustained, long-term cost savings for Virginia families and small businesses. Second, she insisted on protecting Virginia’s utility workforce—linemen, grid operators, and engineers who maintain the state’s power system. Third, she called for a clear plan to accelerate progress toward affordable, reliable, local, and clean energy production.
The governor has already signed more than a dozen laws aimed at lowering energy costs, including a first-of-its-kind statewide consumption tax on data centers to ensure they pay their fair share for the power they consume. The State Corporation Commission, following her urging, recently ordered data centers to cover the cost of transmission infrastructure built exclusively for their facilities.
NextEra, a Florida-based utility company, agreed in May to acquire Dominion in an all-stock transaction. Dominion operates the largest data center market in the world in Northern Virginia, making the merger’s impact on electricity prices a critical concern for state policymakers. Spanberger’s intervention reflects broader political pressure: voters have grown increasingly angry over rising utility bills and suspect that large-scale data center expansion is driving those increases.
The merger faces regulatory review not only in Virginia but also in North Carolina, South Carolina, and at the federal level. The companies expect the transaction to close in late 2027, pending all required approvals. However, Virginia’s role is considered pivotal: the State Corporation Commission’s decision could significantly influence outcomes in other states and set expectations for how the combined company will operate.
Spanberger emphasized that her intervention does not mean she intends to make the commission’s decision for it. Instead, she said, the action ensures that Virginians have a voice in a process that will shape energy affordability for decades. “The SCC’s mandate requires that commissioners balance the interests of citizens, businesses, and customers in their decisions,” she wrote. “But for a deal this consequential, I will not watch from the sidelines as that potential balance is assessed and determined.”
Sources
- Governor of Virginia — Official announcement and text of Spanberger’s op-ed on the merger intervention, including her three priorities and legal authority for the action
- CNBC — Reporting on Spanberger’s intervention, the deal’s scale, and context about data center concerns and voter sentiment on electricity prices
- Virginia Mercury — Coverage of the unprecedented nature of the governor’s action and the six-month SCC review timeline
- Dominion Energy and NextEra Energy investor filings — Confirmation of the merger application filing date (July 15, 2026), deal structure, and expected closing timeline
