Frequently asked questions

The Expedition Generating Station would generate up to 1,540 megawatts, enough to reliably power 1.5 million homes.

It is important to note that a natural gas power plant requires about 50 acres for operations. However, Tenaska typically acquires additional land for easements, construction laydown and buffer between adjacent properties. Tenaska is siting the Expedition facility on 50 acres within our 425-acre site.

In comparison, a solar project able to generate a comparable amount of power requires 30,000 to 40,000 acres.

A natural gas power plant provides more electricity – and more reliably – on a smaller footprint, in part because of its ability to generate power all hours of the day.

Tenaska has been a good business neighbor in Fluvanna County for more than 20 years. We have built positive relationships and feel like a welcomed and valued member of the community. The growing market demand for reliable power in this region and the existing infrastructure in Fluvanna County have created an opportunity for Tenaska to bring additional investment to this community. We look forward to working with the community to bring this project and its economic benefits to fruition.

The Expedition Generating Station plans to use existing transmission infrastructure and connect into the existing Cunningham substation. Expedition is NOT connecting to the proposed Valley Link transmission line and is NOT associated with that project.

Expedition will be connecting into the existing Cunningham substation and is not reliant on Valley Link’s Joshua Falls to Yeat transmission project.

Tenaska has not finalized an offtake contract for this project, as these types of agreements typically come later in development. There is a significant need in the market for natural gas projects like Expedition that can provide reliable energy and help meet increased electric demand in Fluvanna County and Virginia.

There are a number of factors that influence property values and the housing market. It has been our experience with other Tenaska projects of similar size and design that property values have not been negatively affected by plant operations. In fact, the jobs and increased tax revenue for the community typically have a positive impact on local schools and other amenities that factor into property values.

The presence of the Tenaska Virginia plant does not appear to have deterred housing growth. By our rough calculations, the number of homes within one mile of the plant has grown 35% between 2002 and 2024. Looking at the county as a whole, residential housing increased by 26% during the same time period.

Under the conditions of the Special Use Permit approved by Fluvanna County, Expedition must submit a decommissioning plan and post a decommissioning bond.

Expedition has received its required land use approvals from Fluvanna County. However, the project cannot move forward until it has received all required state and federal permits, which includes:

• Virginia Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity (State Corporation Commission)
• Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD) Air Quality Permit (DEQ)
• Title V Operating Permit (DEQ)
• Virginia Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (VPDES) Wastewater Discharge Permit (DEQ)
• Virginia Water Protection Permit (DEQ) / Clean Water Act Section 404 Permit (USACE) for wetlands, T&E species, cultural and historical resources
• Construction stormwater permit(s) with post-construction stormwater requirements (DEQ, Fluvanna County)

Pending all the required permits, the earliest construction start would be in late 2027, with the earliest operations in late 2031.

The plant is being designed to operate on both natural gas and ultra-low sulfur diesel fuel. The plant would only operate on diesel fuel when required to do so by the grid operator, typically in emergency operation conditions such as a winter storm and for required testing. We anticipate keeping a four-day supply of diesel fuel on site. Diesel fuel is more expensive than natural gas and is more challenging from an operational perspective, but it does provide additional reliability and ensures we can provide power when it is most needed.

The existing pipelines are currently being evaluated to determine the amount of available capacity. Existing lines will be utilized to the extent possible and new lines will be built as needed, utilizing existing rights-of-way to the maximum extent practical.

Yes. Tenaska has entered into contracts to secure all the long-lead-time equipment, including the combustion turbine generators, that is necessary to complete the project on the targeted schedule.

Tenaska has acquired a large amount of wooded property near the existing power plant for this new facility. As envisioned, the Expedition Generating Station would be situated on approximately 50 acres of the 425-acre site, providing ample setback and visual and sound buffer. Keep in mind that there is minimal view of the existing plant, given the tree line and topography of the location.

Tenaska has also acquired approximately 350 acres of land slightly to the south, which we will put into perpetual conservation easement as part of our development plan. We believe this will help preserve the rural character of this part of Fluvanna County.

Tenaska will manage the vegetative buffer with the goal of maintaining a healthy forest. We will work with the Virginia Department of Forestry to implement a forestry management plan, which will be overseen by an area forester.

Impacts to wildlife are expected to be minimal. We will conduct various on-site environmental studies prior to the start of construction to understand and mitigate potential impacts on wildlife. The project will comply with all applicable state and federal permit requirements associated with wildlife, including the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Additionally, the project’s air and water discharge permits will be protective of both human health and wildlife.

Tenaska will manage the unused portions of our project site under a forestry management plan overseen by an area forester. Under this plan, the existing pines will occasionally be thinned to allow for native hardwoods to replace them slowly over time. Doing this slowly, over a period of many years, will allow a continuous vegetative buffer around the facility to be maintained at all times to help reduce sound and visual impacts.

Regarding the conservation parcels, Tenaska will work with the holder of the conservation easement, such as the Virginia Outdoors Foundation, to legally enforce the conservation requirements.

The Expedition Generating Station would provide significant positive benefits to the community in terms of jobs, contractor opportunities and nearly $250 million in tax revenue that can support schools and other local services while helping to alleviate the residential tax burden. Tenaska has proven time and again to be a good business neighbor, supporting first responders, schools, students and other community needs.

Our team listens to community concerns and has worked hard to mitigate project impacts and maximize local benefits. This includes:

• Placing 350 acres into perpetual conservation easement.
• Inclusion of the latest sound mitigation technology and stricter sound standards.
• A Good Neighbor Fund that would provide annual payments – totaling approximately $5 million – to Fluvanna County homeowners within 2 miles of either the existing Tenaska Virginia plant or the Expedition project during each year of construction.
• A Community Advisory Board that would ensure continued dialogue between Tenaska and the community over the course of development, construction and into operation.
• Construction of a roundabout at the intersection of Ruritan Lake Road and Highway 53, which is already seeing high volumes of traffic.
• $7 million in funding for first responders that can be used for a future first responder station in the Kidds Store area and to support the sheriff’s department.

The filing with the county expressly stated that additional electric, gas, water and wastewater infrastructure would be required and explained that the project was being sited adjacent to the existing Tenaska facility to utilize existing utility easements, transmission infrastructure and substations. 

In addition, the Special Use Permit application package included conceptual and illustrative site plans showing the project layout, including the project substation, as well as location mapping depicting the transmission corridor, routing and interconnection location. The application also included supporting exhibits addressing traffic, sound, environmental resources, landscaping, lighting, visual impacts and site access. 

The application filed with the State Corporation Commission contains a greater level of engineering detail because those agencies review different aspects of the project. However, the existence of additional technical detail in state filings does not mean the infrastructure was new or previously undisclosed. The essential components of the project, including the generating station, electrical interconnection facilities, supporting utility infrastructure and overall project footprint, were clearly communicated in the application submitted to Fluvanna County.

Tenaska takes pride in hiring local when possible. Today, there are 29 employees at Tenaska Virginia, of which 19 live in Fluvanna County and 10 are graduates of area high schools. We expect the Expedition facility to provide 29 direct jobs. Job opportunities at the new facility will be posted closer to the start of operations.

Tenaska makes it a priority to ensure that local workers are utilized by our contractors to the maximum extent practical. Interested contractors and vendors can submit their information using our contractors and vendors form.

Yes. Through an agreement with Fluvanna County, Expedition is required to place those two southern parcels into perpetual conversation easement.

Tenaska has acquired property via a purchase option agreement that provides the Expedition project with the exclusive right and option to purchase the property. This includes the main project property and the land that would be put into conservation easement. This agreement has been recorded with Fluvanna County.

Electric utility bills are determined by the utility, such as Central Virginia Electric Cooperative or Dominion Energy, and the State Corporation Commission. There are many factors that determine electric utility rates, including energy demand, which is growing rapidly. In general, low-cost generation like natural gas will increase the supply of reliable electricity in Virginia and, therefore, is anticipated to be a positive factor in helping to stabilize energy pricing.

Yes. There are environmental justice components as part of the state permitting processes.

Additionally, our team has had many conversations with Fluvanna County residents – both in group settings and individually. These conversations will continue over the lengthy development period and beyond. We have and continue to incorporate community feedback into our plans.

To date (since June 2025), our community outreach has included a project website with details about the proposed Expedition Generating Station, including a map, rendering and comprehensive list of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs); videos of key topics of interest to the community; a dedicated project email address and phone number; advertisements in the local newspaper of record; interviews with local media outlets; email blasts; direct mail; small group briefings; neighbors surveys and home visits; county-wide mailings; and a community open house.

Expedition has started the process of establishing a Community Advisory Board (CAB) to ensure two-way dialogue with neighbors and the broader community continues over the remainder of development, through construction and into operation.

Public education and community outreach are critical for projects like Expedition. This fosters trust and a productive dialogue around community concerns.

Our team has had many conversations with Fluvanna County residents – both in group settings and individually. These conversations will continue over the lengthy development period and beyond.

To date (since June 2025), our community outreach has included a project website with details about the proposed Expedition Generating Station, including a map, rendering and comprehensive list of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs); videos of key topics of interest to the community; a dedicated project email address and phone number; advertisements in the local newspaper of record; interviews with local media outlets; email blasts; direct mail; small group briefings; neighbors surveys and home visits; county-wide mailings; and a community open house.

We have been working hard to respond to community concerns, mitigate project impacts and maximize local benefits. This includes:

• Placing 350 acres into perpetual conservation easement.
• Inclusion of the latest sound mitigation technology and stricter sound standards.
• A Good Neighbor Fund that would provide annual payments – totaling approximately $5 million – to Fluvanna County homeowners within 2 miles of either the existing Tenaska Virginia plant or the Expedition project during each year of construction.
• A Community Advisory Board that would ensure continued dialogue between Tenaska and the community over the course of development, construction and into operation.
• Construction of a roundabout at the intersection of Ruritan Lake Road and Highway 53, which is already seeing high volumes of traffic.
• $7 million in funding for first responders that can be used for a future first responder station in the Kidds Store area and to support the sheriff’s department.

As part of our community engagement work, Tenaska worked with consultant ERM to establish a Community Advisory Board (CAB). The purpose of the CAB is to ensure productive two-way dialogue about the Expedition project, with opportunities for CAB members to offer feedback and input.

The first meeting of the CAB was in July 2026. CAB meetings will be held quarterly through development, construction and the first year of operation of Expedition. Agendas and materials from CAB meetings can be found on the Community page.

The new plant will become operational only if it receives an Air Permit from the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) stating it will meet stringent air quality standards under the U.S. Clean Air Act and DEQ regulations.

The Clean Air Act establishes the process for protecting public health from air emissions. This is done through National Ambient Air Quality Standards that are based on criteria allowing for an adequate margin of safety and are requisite to protect the public health.

The primary NAAQS standards provide public health protection, including the health of ‘sensitive’ populations such as asthmatics, children and the elderly. In 2024, the EPA under the Biden administration significantly strengthened the annual standard for PM_2.5. The new standard was widely praised by public health organizations.

For its existing facility, Tenaska submits quarterly air emissions monitoring reports, semi-annual monitoring and deviation reports, annual compliance certification and annual emissions inventory to DEQ. We also submit quarterly CEMS (Continuous Emissions Monitoring Systems) data to the U.S. EPA. The Expedition plant would follow the same compliance protocols.

Air quality impacts will be assessed via the air permit application, which will include extensive modeling to predict ground-level concentrations of numerous pollutants from not only Expedition but from other surrounding sources (including the existing plant) as well as monitored background concentrations. The cumulative concentrations will then be compared to ambient standards, which are set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to be protective of human health and the environment. The DEQ will spend months reviewing the application and will issue a permit only if all requirements are met.

We have provided three supplementary environmental memos to the county, one of which includes preliminary air quality modeling for maximum cumulative impacts from both the existing plant and Expedition combined predicts emissions to be 7-15 times less than the federal and state standards for PM_2.5.

The Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) is the agency that would issue a Prevention of Significant Deterioration Air Quality Permit, required prior to construction, and a Title V Operating Permit after commencement of operation. This agency has stringent requirements related to air quality and natural gas power plants that are intended to protect human health and the environment.

Expedition will be required to demonstrate:

• That it is employing Best Available Control Technology (BACT) to minimize emissions.
• That emissions from the plant will not cause off-property concentrations to exceed each of the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) when including other specific surrounding sources and existing background concentrations.

For its existing facility, Tenaska submits quarterly air emissions monitoring reports, semi-annual monitoring and deviation reports, annual compliance certification and annual emissions inventory to the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality. We also submit quarterly CEMS (Continuous Emissions Monitoring Systems) data to the U.S. EPA. The Expedition plant would follow the same compliance protocols.

There will likely be at least three public participation opportunities. Tenaska will be required to hold an informational briefing after application submittal (scheduled for July 28, 2026 – click for info). Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) will hold a public briefing once the draft permit is available and then will hold at least one public hearing during the comment period.

Tenaska can’t speak to what President Trump intends to do.

What we can tell you is that Tenaska has an exemplary record of compliance. Our power plants operate at emissions levels far below the federal limits, and we do not intend to alter plant operations should NAAQS be revised.

Given concerns about potential loosening of federal standards, Expedition is committed to compliance with the NAAQS for fine particulate matter (PM_2.5) that are in place today, unless more restrictive standards are required. This commitment is a condition of the Special Use Permit approved by Fluvanna County.

Modeling results from the Tenaska Virginia Generating Station’s air permitting process are shown here compared to the standards existing at the time that project was permitted and the current standards.

Tenaska Virginia’s contribution to air quality is shown in the middle column compared to the 2000 standards (4^th column) and the current standards (last column).

As shown, the results are all less than 15% of the applicable standard. These results do not include background or surrounding sources as the plant’s results were so low (i.e., below the Significant Impact Levels) that modeling of surrounding sources was not required. PM_2.5 was not evaluated in 2000, given the PM₁₀ Surrogate Policy in effect at the time, but the PM₁₀ results can be compared to the PM_2.5 standards as all particulate matter emitted from natural gas combustion are considered to be both PM₁₀ and PM_2.5.

Our existing facility has an exemplary compliance record. Tenaska submits quarterly air emissions monitoring reports, semi-annual monitoring and deviation reports, annual compliance certification and annual emissions inventory to the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ). We also submit quarterly CEMS (Continuous Emissions Monitoring Systems) data to the U.S. EPA. The Expedition plant would follow the same compliance protocols.

Byproducts of natural gas combustion include nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, sulfur oxides, volatile organic compounds and particulate matter. The amounts of these by-products will be included in the air permit application.

Air quality impacts will be assessed via the air permit application, which will include extensive modeling to predict ground-level concentrations of numerous pollutants from not only Expedition but from other surrounding sources (including the existing plant) as well as monitored background concentrations. The cumulative concentrations will then be compared to ambient standards, which are set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to be protective of human health and the environment. Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (VDEQ) will spend months reviewing the application and will issue a permit only if all requirements are met.

Expedition will be required to demonstrate:

• That it is employing Best Available Control Technology (BACT) to minimize emissions.
• That emissions from the plant will not cause off-property concentrations to exceed each of the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) when including other specific surrounding sources and existing background concentrations.

Preliminary studies have been completed, and impacts to wildlife are expected to be minimal and would be mitigated as required (which could include performing certain construction activities during specified times of year to avoid impacts). The project will comply with all applicable state and federal permit requirements associated with wildlife, including the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

The agency has told Tenaska that it will consider Expedition and the existing plant as a single source. Air quality modeling performed for Expedition’s air permit application was always going to include emissions from the existing plant.

It will decrease emissions of particulate matter from the cooling towers. 

Safety is of utmost importance to Tenaska, and we work hard to design a safe plant that is protective of the employees, residents and wildlife. This has been demonstrated through the safe operation of the Tenaska Virginia facility, as well as the safe operations of the entire Tenaska fleet, which encompasses 6,600 megawatts of generation.

Employees at Tenaska Virginia have received dozens of awards from the National Safety Council, and the plant has been certified (and re-certified) as a Voluntary Protection Program (VPP) Star Worksite by the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration – a recognition obtained by only 0.03% of work sites (3 in every 10,000), demonstrating our strong safety culture.

The Virginia Department of Environmental Quality has requirements related to air quality and natural gas power plants, including compliance with ambient air quality standards. Our facility will be designed, built and operated in compliance with these standards, which are intended to be protective of human health and the environment.

Safety is a priority. Employees at the plant are trained to respond to emergency situations that could arise. Additionally, the plant routinely holds on-site training drills with local first responders, which ensures appropriate response plans are developed and practiced. In addition, these training drills offer opportunities for local first responders to practice their skills for the benefit of the community. While there have been many training drills at the plant, no major emergency response has been required.

We will be required to meet security standards, most notably those from the North American Electric Reliability Corporation – Critical Infrastructure Protection, which we call NERC CIP. This is a set of security standards designed to protect the electric grid, including plants like ours, from cyber and physical threats. One of the key cybersecurity aspects of a plant like ours is that it is isolated from the Internet, so a hacker simply cannot reach our systems. We also have physical deterrents such as fencing and 24/7 monitoring.

The facility will primarily use chemicals for emissions control, cooling systems, lubrication and water treatment. Ammonia is injected into the Heat Recovery Steam Generator to reduce air emissions. Water treatment chemicals include chlorine and dechlorinator, as well as chemicals to control the pH of the water and prevent scaling. Hydrogen is used for generator cooling, and glycol is used in some of the smaller plant heat exchangers. Lubricating oils are used in rotating equipment, and fuel oil is stored on site for emergency operation.

The plant would be required to submit a chemical inventory annually to the state emergency response commission, the local emergency planning committee and the local fire department that would respond to any chemical emergency.

Safety is always our top priority, and Tenaska’s existing facility has been recognized by U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration as a Voluntary Protection Program (VPP) Star site, a recognition obtained by only 0.03% of work sites (3 in every 10,000), demonstrating our strong safety culture.