A new transmission project could place the state’s highest voltage transmission lines in Orange County and residents are voicing concerns.
The Valley Link transmission projects, approved by regional transmission organization PJM Interconnection in February 2025, are a joint venture by Dominion Energy, Transource and First Energy. Valley Link includes three separate projects–building approximately 260 miles of 765 kV transmission line and two substations between Putnam County, WV and Frederick County, MD; building approximately 115 miles of 765 kV transmission line and a substation between Campbell County and Culpeper County, both in Virginia; and building a new substation in Caroline County.
The second of the three projects, named the Joshua Falls-Yeat project, will likely have the most local impact. Preliminary routes cross up to nine localities, including Orange County. The project is said to strengthen grid stability and support the state’s continued economic and technological leadership in what officials have said is the state’s fastest growth in electricity demand since post-World War II.
“This project is essential for Virginia’s economy, the reliability of our grid and the everyday lives of our customers,” Valley Link Transmission Board of Managers and Dominion Energy’s Senior Vice President of Electric Transmission Joe Woomer said. “As our economy and population grow, Virginians are using more power than ever before. This project will strengthen the electric grid and provide a reliable backbone to serve the growing needs of homes, schools, hospitals and businesses across Virginia.”
At 765kV, the transmission lines are the highest voltage, highest capacity transmission line type available in the country and would be among the largest lines in the state. American Electric Power (AEP) built a 765 kV grid. The newly proposed line would link to an existing AEP line near Lynchburg.
The specific route for the line is still being developed with several options being evaluated. The route will be finalized later this year based on community input, surveys and the study of environmental, cultural and historical resources. According to an online map, two corridors are being evaluated with several variations. Both corridors enter Orange County near Thornhill and travel northeast across 522 up near Tatum and Mine Run crossing 621 and 20, before crossing 611 near Burr Hill and crossing Rt. 3 ending in the proposed Yeat substation in Culpeper County.
Several structures are also currently being considered for the project, with higher voltage lines needing higher elevations. According to Valley Link, typical structures for 765kV lines are approximately between 135 and 160 feet tall. The structures require approximately 200-feet of right-of-way.
Residents who may be impacted by the project were notified by mailed letter last week, causing the project to be a topic of conversation at Tuesday’s Orange County Board of Supervisors meeting. Chairman and District 5 Supervisor Bryan Nicol said the project will likely be the most impactful thing supervisors will deal with this year.
“The project that will come through Orange County has the potential to disrupt our rural heritage and farmlands,” he said. “There’s almost nothing we can do as a board to deny this project coming through. This is where residents come in.”
Nicol said it’s important that potentially impacted residents get involved in the process, attending upcoming public meetings on the project. A variety of public meetings will be held next month in the affected counties. The Orange County meeting is scheduled for Monday, March 9, 5:30-7:30 p.m. at Lafayette Station, 26322 Constitution Highway, Rhoadesville, VA 22542. For those who can’t make it in person, virtual meetings will be held via Microsoft Teams Thursday, March 5, 12-1 p.m. and Monday, March 16, 12-1 p.m. Links to those meetings and more information about the project can be found online at vltransmission.com/joshua-falls-to-yeat.
Once the route is finalized, the project will be submitted to the State Corporation Commission (SCC) for approval. Nicol said once the application is filed, the supervisors will file an official notice of participation to be involved in the SCC process.
“We will take any action we see necessary and appropriate to provide input in that process and represent you all through that application process,” he said to those in attendance at the board meeting.
District 1 Supervisor Jason Capelle said he doesn’t see any good route for the transmission lines to cross through Orange County and doesn’t believe they should be located in the county. He also cautioned against working with other counties on an agreed to path since the others may try to place it in Orange.
Michael Regan, who resides in the gated Meadowland community, spoke on behalf of the homeowner’s association asking the supervisors to adopt a resolution reaffirming the board’s commitment to preserving rural character consistent with the comprehensive plan and to formally request rigorous scrutiny of the project at the SCC level.
“Infrastructure of this magnitude doesn’t just come in and pass through the area, leaving everything else unchanged,” Regan said. “This is a decision that has long-term implications.”
Becky Dayton said according to the maps, the convergence of the routes is on her Pine River Road property. She said the property was purchased knowing the Colonial Valley Pipeline was located on it, but she never anticipated a utility on the scale of the enormous transmission lines would be proposed. She said if approved, the project will take such a large easement on her son’s property that it will be rendered unbuildable.
Robert Blakely said another home that was to be built in that same area has already been cancelled. The homeowner, he said, chose to not move forward since the transmission project is projected to run across the 10 acre property.
Holly Dean, a longtime employee of Orange County Public Schools, said she was concerned about the 900 students and 100 staff members who are on the Locust Grove Primary and Elementary School campuses. She said according to released maps, the proposed route would run between the campus and the existing solar project.
“This infrastructure doesn’t serve Orange County and certainly not our students,” Dean said.
If approved, the Joshua Falls-Yeat project will likely be completed by 2029.
In addition to the joint Valley Link project, other projects were approved by PJM to be developed individually by each of the three companies in their service areas. Dominion maintains a list of its power line projects online at https://www.dominionenergy.com/about/delivering-energy/electric-projects/power-line-projects.
