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Significant Accounting Policies (Policies)

6 Months Ended

Jun. 30, 2020

As permitted by the rules and regulations of the SEC, the Companies’ accompanying unaudited Consolidated Financial Statements contain certain condensed financial information and exclude certain footnote disclosures normally included in annual audited consolidated financial statements prepared in accordance with GAAP. These unaudited Consolidated Financial Statements should be read in conjunction with the Consolidated Financial Statements and Notes in the Companies’ Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019.

In the Companies’ opinion, the accompanying unaudited Consolidated Financial Statements contain all adjustments necessary to present fairly their financial position at June 30, 2020, their results of operations and changes in equity for the three and six months ended June 30, 2020 and 2019 and their cash flows for the six months ended June 30, 2020 and 2019. Such adjustments are normal and recurring in nature unless otherwise noted.

Estimates

The Companies make certain estimates and assumptions in preparing their Consolidated Financial Statements in accordance with GAAP. These estimates and assumptions affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities, the disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses for the periods presented. Actual results may differ from those estimates.

Consolidation

The Companies’ accompanying unaudited Consolidated Financial Statements include, after eliminating intercompany transactions and balances, their accounts, those of their respective majority-owned subsidiaries and non-wholly-owned entities in which they have a controlling financial interest. For certain partnership structures, income is allocated based on the liquidation value of the underlying contractual arrangements. At June 30, 2020, Dominion Energy owns 50% of the voting interests in Four Brothers and Three Cedars and has a controlling financial interest over the entities through its right to control operations. GIP’s ownership interest in Four Brothers and Three Cedars, Terra Nova Renewable Partners’ 33% interest in certain Dominion Energy merchant solar projects, Brookfield’s 25% interest in Cove Point (effective December 2019) and the non-Dominion Energy held interest in Dominion Energy Midstream (through January 2019) are reflected as noncontrolling interest in Dominion Energy’s Consolidated Financial Statements. Terra Nova Renewable Partners has a future option to buy all or a portion of Dominion Energy’s remaining 67% ownership in certain merchant projects upon the occurrence of certain events, none of which are expected to occur in the next 12 months. Brookfield’s 25% interest in Cove Point (effective December 2019) and the public’s ownership interest in Dominion Energy Midstream (through January 2019) are reflected as noncontrolling interest in Dominion Energy Gas’ Consolidated Financial Statements.

Reclassifications

Certain amounts in the Companies’ 2019 Consolidated Financial Statements and Notes have been reclassified to conform to the 2020 presentation for comparative purposes; however, such reclassifications did not affect the Companies’ net income, total assets, liabilities, equity or cash flows.

Amounts disclosed for Dominion Energy are inclusive of Virginia Power and/or Dominion Energy Gas, where applicable. There have been no significant changes from Note 2 to the Consolidated Financial Statements in the Companies’ Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019, with the exception of the items described below.

Cash, Restricted Cash and Equivalents

The following table provides a reconciliation of the total cash, restricted cash and equivalents reported within the Companies’ Consolidated Balance Sheets to the corresponding amounts reported within the Companies’ Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows for the six months ended June 30, 2020 and 2019:

	Cash, Restricted Cash and Equivalents at End of Period				Cash, Restricted Cash and Equivalents at Beginning of Period
	June 30, 2020		June 30, 2019		December 31, 2019		December 31, 2018
(millions)
Dominion Energy
Cash and cash equivalents	$	675	$	382	$	166	$	268
Restricted cash and equivalents⁽¹⁾		67		178		103		123
Cash, restricted cash and equivalents shown in the Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows	$	742	$	560	$	269	$	391
Virginia Power
Cash and cash equivalents	$	37	$	17	$	17	$	29
Restricted cash and equivalents⁽¹⁾		3		8		7		9
Cash, restricted cash and equivalents shown in the Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows	$	40	$	25	$	24	$	38
Dominion Energy Gas
Cash and cash equivalents⁽²⁾	$	53	$	195	$	27	$	108
Restricted cash and equivalents ⁽¹⁾		11		12		12		90
Cash, restricted cash and equivalents shown in the Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows	$	64	$	207	$	39	$	198

(1)	Restricted cash and equivalent balances are presented within other current assets in the Companies’ Consolidated Balance Sheets.

(2)	At June 30, 2019 and December 31, 2018, Dominion Energy Gas had $12 million and $9 million of cash and cash equivalents included in current assets of discontinued operations, respectively.

Property, Plant and Equipment

In January 2019, Virginia Power committed to a plan to retire certain automated metering reading infrastructure associated with its electric operations before the end of its estimated useful life and replace such equipment with more current AMI technology. As a result, Virginia Power recorded a charge of $160 million ($119 million after-tax) in the first quarter of 2019, included in impairment of assets and other charges in its Consolidated Statements of Income. This charge is considered a component of Virginia Power’s base rates deemed recovered under the GTSA, subject to review as discussed in Note 13 to the Consolidated Financial Statements in Virginia Power’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019.

In March 2019, Virginia Power committed to retire certain electric generating units before the end of their useful lives and completed the retirement of certain units at six facilities representing 1,292 MW of electric generating capacity, which had previously been placed in cold reserve. An additional unit at Possum Point power station will be retired after it meets its capacity obligation to PJM in 2021. As a result, Virginia Power recorded a charge of $369 million ($275 million after-tax) in the first quarter of 2019, primarily included in impairment of assets and other charges in its Consolidated Statements of Income. This charge is considered a component of Virginia Power’s base rates deemed recovered under the GTSA, subject to review as discussed in Note 13 to the Consolidated Financial Statements in Virginia Power’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019.

In May 2019, Virginia Power abandoned a coal rail project at its Mt. Storm generating facility. As a result, Virginia Power recorded a charge of $62 million ($46 million after-tax) in the second quarter of 2019, included in impairment of assets and other charges in its Consolidated Statements of Income.

In March 2020, Virginia Power committed to retire certain coal- and oil-fired generating units before the end of their useful lives based on economic and other factors, including but not limited to market power prices and the VCEA. These units will be retired after they meet their capacity obligations to PJM in 2023. As a result, Virginia Power recorded a charge of $754 million ($561 million after-tax) in the first quarter of 2020, primarily included in impairment of assets and other charges in its Consolidated Statements of Income. This charge is considered a component of Virginia Power’s base rates deemed recovered under the GTSA, subject to review as discussed in Note 13 to the Consolidated Financial Statements in Virginia Power’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019.

In the second quarter of 2020, Virginia Power recorded charges of $30 million ($22 million after-tax) associated with dismantling certain of these electric generation facilities, recorded in impairment of assets and other charges in its Consolidated Statements of Income.

In the first quarter of 2020, Virginia Power updated depreciation rates for its nuclear plants to reflect lower depreciation rates as a result of the expected approval of license extensions from the NRC. This adjustment resulted in a decrease in depreciation expense of $8 million ($6 million after-tax) and $16 million ($12 million after-tax) for the three and six months ended June 30, 2020, respectively, in Virginia Power’s Consolidated Statements of Income and a $0.01 increase in Dominion Energy’s EPS, for both the three and six months ended June 30, 2020. This revision is expected to decrease annual depreciation expense by approximately $31 million ($23 million after-tax) and increase Dominion Energy’s EPS by $0.03 for the year ended December 31, 2020.

In the second quarter of 2020, DESC completed a nuclear decommissioning cost study related to Summer. As a result of the study, Dominion Energy recorded an $89 million increase to its nuclear decommissioning ARO, with a corresponding increase to property, plant and equipment.

In December 2014, DETI entered into a precedent agreement with Atlantic Coast Pipeline for the Supply Header Project. As a result of the cancellation of the Atlantic Coast Pipeline Project, Dominion Energy and Dominion Energy Gas recorded a charge of $482 million ($359 million after-tax) in impairment of assets and other charges in their Consolidated Statements of Income for the three and six months ended June 30, 2020 associated with the probable abandonment of a significant portion of the project as well as the establishment of a $75 million ARO. As DETI evaluates its future use, approximately $40 million remains within property, plant and equipment for a potential modified project.

Credit Risk

Credit risk is the risk of financial loss if counterparties fail to perform their contractual obligations. In order to minimize overall credit risk, credit policies are maintained, including the evaluation of counterparty financial condition, collateral requirements and the use of standardized agreements that facilitate the netting of cash flows associated with a single counterparty. In addition, counterparties may make available collateral, including letters of credit or cash held as margin deposits, as a result of exceeding agreed-upon credit limits, or may be required to prepay the transaction.

Effective January 2020, expected credit losses are estimated and recorded based on historical experience, current conditions and reasonable and supportable forecasts that affect the collectability of financial assets held at amortized cost as well as expected credit losses on commitments with respect to financial guarantees.

Investments

Debt and Equity Securities with Readily Determinable Fair Value

Dominion Energy accounts for and classifies investments in debt securities as trading or available-for-sale securities. Virginia Power classifies investments in debt securities as available-for-sale securities.

• Debt securities classified as trading securities include securities held by Dominion Energy in rabbi trusts associated with certain deferred compensation plans. These securities are reported in other investments in the Consolidated Balance Sheets at fair value with net realized and unrealized gains and losses included in other income in the Consolidated Statements of Income.

• Debt securities classified as available-for-sale securities include all other debt securities, primarily comprised of securities held in the nuclear decommissioning trusts. These investments are reported at fair value in nuclear decommissioning trust funds in the Consolidated Balance Sheets. Net realized and unrealized gains and losses (including any credit-related impairments) on investments held in Virginia Power’s nuclear decommissioning trusts are deferred to a regulatory asset or liability as applicable for certain jurisdictions subject to cost-based regulation. For all other available-for-sale debt securities, including those held in Dominion Energy’s merchant generation nuclear decommissioning trusts, net realized gains and losses (including any credit-related impairments) are included in other income and unrealized gains and losses are reported as a component of AOCI, after-tax.

In determining realized gains and losses for debt securities, the cost basis of the security is based on the specific identification method.

Equity securities with readily determinable fair values include securities held by Dominion Energy in rabbi trusts associated with certain deferred compensation plans and securities held by Dominion Energy and Virginia Power in the nuclear decommissioning

trusts. Dominion Energy and Virginia Power record all equity securities with a readily determinable fair value, or for which they are permitted to estimate fair value using NAV (or its equivalent), at fair value in nuclear decommissioning trust funds and other investments in the Consolidated Balance Sheets. However, Dominion Energy and Virginia Power may elect a measurement alternative for equity securities without a readily determinable fair value. Under the measurement alternative, equity securities are reported at cost minus impairment, if any, plus or minus changes resulting from observable price changes in orderly transactions for the identical or a similar investment of the same issuer. Dominion Energy and Virginia Power qualitatively assess equity securities reported using the measurement alternative to determine whether an investment is impaired on an ongoing basis. Net realized and unrealized gains and losses on equity securities held in Virginia Power’s nuclear decommissioning trusts are deferred to a regulatory asset or liability, as applicable, for certain jurisdictions subject to cost-based regulation. For all other equity securities, including those held in Dominion Energy’s merchant generation nuclear decommissioning trusts and rabbi trusts, net realized and unrealized gains and losses are included in other income in the Consolidated Statements of Income.

Equity Securities without Readily Determinable Fair Values

The Companies account for illiquid and privately held securities without readily determinable fair values under either the equity method or cost method. Equity securities without readily determinable fair values include:

• Equity method investments when the Companies have the ability to exercise significant influence, but not control, over the investee. Dominion Energy and Dominion Energy Gas’ investments are included in investments in equity method affiliates in their Consolidated Balance Sheets. Dominion Energy and Dominion Energy Gas record equity method adjustments in other income and earnings from equity method investees, respectively, in their Consolidated Statements of Income, including their proportionate share of investee income or loss, gains or losses resulting from investee capital transactions, amortization of certain differences between the carrying value and the equity in the net assets of the investee at the date of investment and other adjustments required by the equity method.

• Cost method investments when Dominion Energy and Virginia Power do not have the ability to exercise significant influence over the investee. Dominion Energy and Virginia Power’s investments are included in other investments and nuclear decommissioning trust funds. Cost method investments are reported at cost less impairment, if any, plus or minus changes resulting from observable price changes in orderly transactions for identical or similar investments of the same issuer.

Other-Than-Temporary Impairment

The Companies periodically review their equity method investments to determine whether a decline in fair value should be considered other-than-temporary. If a decline in the fair value of any equity method investment is determined to be other-than-temporary, the investment is written down to its fair value at the end of the reporting period.

Credit Impairment

Effective January 2020, Dominion Energy and Virginia Power periodically review their available-for-sale debt securities to determine whether a decline in fair value should be considered credit related. If a decline in the fair value of any available-for-sale debt security is determined to be credit related, the credit-related impairment is recorded to an allowance included in nuclear decommissioning trust funds in Dominion Energy and Virginia Power’s Consolidated Balance Sheets at the end of the reporting period, with such allowance for credit losses subject to reversal in subsequent evaluations.

Using information obtained from their nuclear decommissioning trust fixed-income investment managers, Dominion Energy and Virginia Power record in earnings, or defer as applicable for certain jurisdictions subject to cost-based regulation, any unrealized loss for a debt security when the manager intends to sell the debt security or it is more-likely-than-not that the manager will have to sell the debt security before recovery of its fair value up to its cost basis. If that is not the case, but the debt security is deemed to have experienced a credit loss, Dominion Energy and Virginia Power record the credit loss in earnings with the remaining non-credit portion of the unrealized loss recorded in AOCI. Credit losses are evaluated primarily by considering the credit ratings of the issuer, prior instances of non-performance by the issuer and other factors.

Fair Value Measurements

The Companies enter into certain physical and financial forwards, futures, options and swaps, which are considered Level 3 as they have one or more inputs that are not observable and are significant to the valuation. The discounted cash flow method is used to value Level 3 physical and financial forwards, futures and swaps contracts. An option model is used to value Level 3 physical options. The discounted cash flow model for forwards, futures and swaps calculates mark-to-market valuations based on forward market prices, original transaction prices, volumes, risk-free rate of return and credit spreads. The option model calculates mark-to-market valuations using variations of the Black-Scholes option model. The inputs into the models are the forward market prices, implied price volatilities, risk-free rate of return, the option expiration dates, the option strike prices, the original sales prices and volumes. For Level 3 fair value measurements, certain forward market prices and implied price volatilities are considered unobservable.

Commitments and Contingencies

As a result of issues generated in the ordinary course of business, the Companies are involved in legal proceedings before various courts and are periodically subject to governmental examinations (including by regulatory authorities), inquiries and investigations. Certain legal proceedings and governmental examinations involve demands for unspecified amounts of damages, are in an initial procedural phase, involve uncertainty as to the outcome of pending appeals or motions, or involve significant factual issues that need to be resolved, such that it is not possible for the Companies to estimate a range of possible loss. For such matters that the Companies cannot estimate, a statement to this effect is made in the description of the matter. Other matters may have progressed sufficiently through the litigation or investigative processes such that the Companies are able to estimate a range of possible loss. For legal proceedings and governmental examinations that the Companies are able to reasonably estimate a range of possible losses, an estimated range of possible loss is provided, in excess of the accrued liability (if any) for such matters. Any accrued liability is recorded on a gross basis with a receivable also recorded for any probable insurance recoveries. Estimated ranges of loss are inclusive of legal fees and net of any anticipated insurance recoveries. Any estimated range is based on currently available information and involves elements of judgment and significant uncertainties. Any estimated range of possible loss may not represent the Companies’ maximum possible loss exposure. The circumstances of such legal proceedings and governmental examinations will change from time to time and actual results may vary significantly from the current estimate. For current proceedings not specifically reported below, management does not anticipate that the liabilities, if any, arising from such proceedings would have a material effect on the Companies’ financial position, liquidity or results of operations.

Guarantees, Surety Bonds and Letters of Credit

Dominion Energy also enters into guarantee arrangements on behalf of its consolidated subsidiaries, primarily to facilitate their commercial transactions with third parties. If any of these subsidiaries fail to perform or pay under the contracts and the counterparties seek performance or payment, Dominion Energy would be obligated to satisfy such obligation. To the extent that a liability subject to a guarantee has been incurred by one of Dominion Energy’s consolidated subsidiaries, that liability is included in the Consolidated Financial Statements. Dominion Energy is not required to recognize liabilities for guarantees issued on behalf of its subsidiaries unless it becomes probable that it will have to perform under the guarantees. Terms of the guarantees typically end once obligations have been paid. Dominion Energy currently believes it is unlikely that it would be required to perform or otherwise incur any losses associated with guarantees of its subsidiaries’ obligations.