By Alan Wooten | The Center Square
(The Center Square) – Virginia is 14th in energy affordability in the Energy Affordability 2026 report from the American Legislative Exchange Council.
ALEC released its analysis on Wednesday. North Dakota and Louisiana were the leaders in the review of electricity prices and energy affordability indicators is measured for each of the 50 states.
Virginia was 23rd a year ago. The report uses the most recent information available for consistency; this means electricity price data is from 2024, and gasoline and diesel fuel prices are from 2025.
Additionally for context, the United States and Israel launched military strikes against Iran on Feb. 28, and the prices of fuel have climbed since. Global energy infrastructure has been impacted by the action and the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.
ALEC says, “Virginia’s electricity generation is led by natural gas and nuclear power, with solar, wood, and coal contributing smaller shares. As the largest net importer, the state supplements substantial in-state generation with regional purchases to meet growing demand. In 2023, Virginia received 50 million MWH through interstate transmission.
“Virginia officials have indicated intent to rejoin the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative cap-and trade program, with the Legislature recently passing legislation to solidify this action. Mandate-driven energy requirements like the ones imposed by RGGI can place upward pressure on long-term electricity costs, even in states with diverse generation portfolios. One grid incident was reported in the most recent year, involving vandalism.”
ALEC suggests statutory guidance with priority on affordability, reliability and domestic production “could help ensure continued cost competitiveness while strengthening grid resilience.”
The report says the average retail price in cents per kilowatt-hour is 10.62. Total retail sales in megawatt-hours are 102.6 million.
Natural gas (59%), nuclear (28%), solar (7%), wood (3%) and coal (2%) represent the top generation sources.
