Dominion Virginia Power, a subsidiary of Dominion, has received approval from the Virginia State Corporation Commission to offer its customers two new options to purchase renewable energy.

“We are very pleased with the commission’s decision to allow us to provide our customers with a convenient, low-cost way to voluntarily support renewable energy,” said David A. Heacock, president of Dominion Virginia Power. “The renewable energy supported through this program will be above and beyond what Dominion produces, so this will encourage development of additional generation of renewable power.”

The program provides two ways for residential and business customers to purchase renewable energy through their monthly bills. Under both options, Dominion will purchase renewable energy certificates from producers of renewable energy in an amount equivalent to the customer participation level.

The first option enables customers to specify that renewable energy certificates will be purchased in an amount equal to 100 percent of the electricity they use. Payment is calculated based on the customer’s monthly electrical usage and current market prices for renewable energy and is included in the monthly bill.

With the second option, customers can specify that a certain amount of renewable energy certificates (in $2 increments) be purchased, with the cost added to their monthly bills. The amount of energy purchased depends on the dollar amount specified by the customer and on current market prices for renewable energy.

Dominion will announce the price of the renewable energy before the program’s launch and will hold the price constant for at least the first year. Dominion stated it will make periodic reports to customers on the type and total amount of renewable energy purchased through the program.

Customers may enroll in the program using secure online means through www.dom.com or by calling the Dominion Customer Service Center.