Kings Creek Solar delayed to 2028 amid brownfield, Navy interconnection issues

Dominion project manager Will McCill told York County supervisors that Kings Creek, a 20‑megawatt solar site east of Penniman Road, is rolling toward a March 2027 mobilization with an expected energization and substantial completion in 2028 due to a series of nontechnical and interconnection delays.

McCill said the site is a brownfield with large underground storage tanks and hydrocarbon‑impacted soils. Dominion elected to exclude panel arrays above certain storage tanks and will follow a DEQ materials management plan for handling contaminated soils. The company also plans enhanced erosion and sediment controls, impermeable liners for basins and a robust vegetation plan to prevent spread of invasive species such as bamboo and kudzu.

A major schedule driver is the interconnection path: Dominion does not have rights to install communication fiber across a distribution line that runs through Navy property. McCill explained the environmental review for that work is nearing completion but the Navy’s real‑estate process may require about 18 months, followed by roughly six months for construction — a timeline that pushes energization into 2028. He said Dominion is recontracting with a new EPC after parting ways with the prior contractor and is moving major equipment into warehouses under VPCO custody while seeking bidders for a new EPC.

Board members asked whether contaminated soils would be removed or managed on site; McCill said soils would be handled in accordance with DEQ rules and, where possible, on‑site cut/fill balance would be preserved but contaminated soils would be disposed of properly. He told the board the panels are expected to have ~30‑year nameplate lifespans and that the company has submitted decommissioning plans and bonds to the county to ensure site restoration at project end.

The developer noted that substantial work — including procuring equipment and recontracting an EPC — is underway, and said Dominion anticipates a pre‑bid walkdown and onboarding of an EPC contractor in early 2027. The timeline now reflects both construction sequencing and dependencies on Navy approvals for the fiber/interconnection path.