Auction Results to Help Set Dominion East Ohio Standard Service Offer Rates for 2008-2009...

Auction Results to Help Set Dominion East Ohio Standard Service Offer Rates
for 2008-2009 Heating Season

CLEVELAND, July 22 /PRNewswire/ -- Beginning September 1, 2008, Dominion
East Ohio sales customers will pay a new Standard Service Offer rate,
consisting of the national market price for natural gas, plus an additional
$2.33 per thousand cubic feet (mcf), based on results of an auction, conducted
today under Public Utilities Commission of Ohio supervision.
The auction results are subject to PUCO approval. The Commission is
scheduled to rule on the auction results July 23, 2008.
Under the auction, five suppliers agreed to provide the amount of natural
gas needed to serve the 400,000, or 30 percent, of Dominion East Ohio's 1.2
million customers who do not already buy natural gas from other suppliers
under Energy Choice or municipal aggregation programs. About 800,000, or 70
percent of the company's customers buy natural gas from competitive suppliers
under the Energy Choice program.
The new auction extends the first phase of Dominion East Ohio's planned
transition to a more competitive market for natural gas service, a pilot
program that began in October 2006.
Through March 31, 2009, Dominion East Ohio sales customers will continue
to pay a Standard Service Offer (SSO) price that varies monthly -- based on
the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) month-end settlement price -- plus
the new Retail Price Adjustment of $2.33 per mcf. This adjustment includes the
cost of transporting gas from producing areas to Ohio. An auction held August
29, 2006, set the previous Retail Price Adjustment of $1.44 per mcf.
Two new auctions, to be held in February 2009, would kick off Phase 2 of
the program.
One auction would set the SSO Retail Price Adjustment covering April 1,
2009, to March 31, 2010. The SSO would include only those customers
participating in the company's Percentage of Income Payment Plan and others
not eligible to participate in Energy Choice.
The second auction would determine the Retail Price Adjustment for a new
Standard Choice Offer (SCO), covering the same time period. Under the SCO, the
company would continue buying natural gas for Choice-eligible customers but
would assign them to a specific supplier and identify that designated supplier
on the customer bill. Customers who do not wish to receive service from their
designated supplier would be free at any time to enroll with a different
Energy Choice supplier or participate in a governmental aggregation program.
Dominion East Ohio recommends all customers consider their Energy Choice
options. Because new offers come out from time to time, customers should
continue to review information available on the Public Utility Commission of
Ohio's "Apples to Apples" chart. To get a free copy of the "Apples to Apples"
chart, which compares various supplier offers, contact the PUCO at
1-800-299-7271 or visit the Commission's website at www.puco.ohio.gov .
Also, the Ohio Consumers' Counsel updates its "Comparing Your Energy
Choices" chart weekly, and also offers the online "Calculating Your Energy
Choices" worksheet, along with general information about participating Energy
Choice suppliers. The OCC's website is www.pickocc.org and the toll-free
number is 1-877-PICKOCC (1-877-742-5622).
Dominion is one of the nation's largest producers and transporters of
energy, with a portfolio of approximately 26,500 megawatts of generation, 1.1
trillion cubic feet equivalent of proved natural gas and oil reserves, 14,000
miles of natural gas transmission, gathering and storage pipeline and 6,000
miles of electric transmission lines. Dominion operates the nation's largest
natural gas storage facility with 975 billion cubic feet of storage capacity
and serves retail energy customers in 11 states. For more information about
Dominion, visit the company's Web site at http://www.dom.com .
SOURCE Dominion East Ohio

Neil Durbin of Dominion, +1-216-736-6239, toll-free in Ohio, 1-800-556-4400,
Neil.J.Durbin@dom.com