Energy Management

Stewards of the Environment and Taxpayer Dollars

Monitoring the use of electricity, natural gas, propane and water is an important part of being good stewards of the environment and taxpayer dollars. This report provides an annual overview of both cost and consumption in county government facilities (not including Chesterfield County Public Schools) as well as an overview of programs and efforts related to energy efficiency and management.

Through several departments, county government maintains approximately 400 facilities for various purposes, totaling over 2 million square feet. These facilities utilize nearly 720 utility accounts for electricity, natural gas, propane, wastewater and water. Many facilities have 24/7/365 uses such as the jail, Juvenile Detention Home, fire stations and Utilities’ pump stations. 

Expenditures

In fiscal year 2022 (FY22), the county government spent close to $4.8 million dollars on utilities, which is a 4.5% increase from fiscal year 2021 (FY21). A categorical breakdown of costs by commodity is as follows:

CommodityFY20FY21FY22FY21-FY22 Percent Change
Electricity$3,901,238$3,745,423$3,857,0662.9%
Natural Gas$339,028$442,479$502,68913.6%
Propane$13,311$12,365$16,49933.4%
Water and Sewer$424,623$387,750$418,8868.0%
Total$4,678,200$4,590,017$4,795,1404.5%


Consumption

An increase in commodity use was also seen in FY22 compared to FY21 except for natural gas which saw 7.2% decrease in use. 

CommodityFY20FY21FY22FY21-FY22 Percent Change
Electricity (kWh)35,542,97235,049,20235,520,4511.3%
Natural Gas (MCF)45,94354,45650,516-7.2%
Propane (Gal)13,7088,4229,43912.1%
Water and Sewer (Mgal)62,81748,23750,4104.5%
  1. FY22 Success Stories
  2. FY22 Initiatives
  3. Upcoming Initiatives (FY23)

FY22 Success Stories and Savings

Addison-Evans Water Treatment Plant - $301,000 Savings
$301,000 savings from contract and rate change. Review of load letter and Dominion contract allowed for a downsized transformer for construction project of the new building for the electrical gear. Additionally, rate change with requested back billing produced additional significant savings.

Matoaca and Thomas Dale High School - $69,838 Savings
$69,838 savings from right sizing of oversized transformers to eliminate facility charges and lower contracted demand. Retroactive rebill for unnecessary delays was requested and granted resulting in a significant credit.

Bailey Bridge Middle School - $8,000 Savings
$8,000 savings for detection and reversal of demand spike due to electrical storm. Decreased contracted demand and recovered back billing.

Matoaca Middle School - $6,100 Savings
$6,100 savings for detection and recovery of double billing error.

Bon Air Library - $5,700 Savings
$5,700 savings due to rate change on electric account.

Solar Power Sites in Chesterfield

Chesterfield County Government and Chesterfield County Public Schools (CCPS) have partnered with Sun Tribe Solar to bring solar power to Chesterfield facilities via a solar power purchase agreement (PPA). In addition to clean, renewable energy, the county and CCPS will achieve ongoing cost savings, primarily through securing long-term electric rate stability. PPAs require no capital investment and Sun Tribe owns, operates and maintains the equipment.

Factors such as roof age, size and warranty as well as orientation are key considerations for selection. The county anticipates actual panel installation beginning in late fall of 2022 with arrays being operational starting in the spring of 2023. Moving forward, all new construction facilities and buildings receiving new roofs will be evaluated for viability. Panel electric production for each facility will be monitored electronically and Chesterfield looks forward to the valuable educational and learning possibilities this will provide for its students.

Click on the column headers below to sort the table.
Facility
Proposed Array Size
(kW DC)
Forecasted Year One
Production (kWh)
Total Carbon Offset
(Metric Tons)
Beulah Elementary School 244.8 330,480 6,654
Beulah Parks and Recreation (Renovation) 240.0 340,656 5,660
Enon Elementary School 209.6 282,960 5,601
Old Hundred Elementary School 293.6 396,360 7,663
Public Safety Training Center 264.8 357,480 6,805
Fleet (New Construction) 191.2 256,644 5,067
Harrowgate Elementary School 273.6 362,145 7,150
Matoaca Elementary School 165.6 254,647 4,371
Ettrick Elementary School 191.2 260,847 5,150
Midlothian Library (New Construction) 283.9 409,327 7,204
Moseley Elementary School 259.2 347,490 6,860