Virginia County Plan Suspends Plan To Install Solar Panels on County Buildings

In 2020 Fairfax County, Virginia developed a very aggressive plan to install solar panels on 100 county schools, libraries, community centers, etc. according to the Washington Post. The plan would supposedly save the county $60 million over 25 years, but the electric utility, Dominion Energy, objected to how the county wanted to make connections to the power grid.
Dominion demanded more sophisticated switching systems for safety, as well as data network connections to keep the utility constantly updated on the power output of the facilities. These requirements would make most small and medium size projects cost prohibitive. The utility is responsible for maintaining a constant, reliable power supply.
Non-dispatchable sources of electricity like solar panels increase the uncertainty in the supply of electrical power, causing utilities to have to rapidly increase and decrease other forms of power to counteract the irregular, shifting output of solar and wind. The more such “renewable” power is installed, the greater the difficulty in operating a stable and reliable energy system.