Pandemic has taken a new turn with the delta variant. And it seems this is not the last variant – more variants to come unless we can somehow stop the virus from multiplying. We hear high vaccination rates are a solution and potentially supplemented booster doses.

School begins soon, all in person this time. Kids will love going back to meet their friends again. Mask mandates also seem to be making a come back. Kids with masks and plexiglass walls will be interesting. Hopefully it will go away soon and we can get back to normal.

After a long wait vaccines are finally here. The delivery and inoculations of vaccines has been very impressive, at least where I am. I am happy to be fully vaccinated and look forward to ending this chapter of Covid related restrictions for everyone. Its been a learning experience for me and for all. Things we take for granted, even little things like going to a store which we never though twice about, can be out of reach for us anytime. I am ready for the next chapter of appreciating the little things, relationships and friends.

It’s been a while since my last post. We, like everyone else, have been busy setting up the “home classroom”. For the school year starting this fall, most schools either have all virtual classes or provide an option to choose virtual learning, and rightly so – it’s best for the safety of all. Not just students, but more importantly the teachers who play the very important role of ensuring the safety of students, amidst everything else they do.

Home classrooms need a dedicated space, or room, where students can focus while limiting any distractions. A space not too far from parent’s home offices, so it’s easy to monitor their attention and periodically have small talk with them to break the monotony. Most schools have issued Chromebooks to students and it’s really important familiarize yourself and your child with it so 1^st day (or week) of school doesn’t have any hiccups. I guess it’s a lesson for the student that being prepared is always the 1^st step.   

We have our already set up, and we hope that we can get the most of the virtual lessons in our “home classroom”.  

Around the world, Earth Day is celebrated April 22.  This year – 2020 – marks the 50^th year of celebrating Earth Day. 

Climate change is a significant energy and environmental challenge.  As an employee in the energy industry, recognizing the impact of our actions and protecting our planet are ever-present themes.  I’m proud of the work that Dominion Energy does on a daily basis to put environmental stewardship on the forefront of the business.  Investing in renewables is one area that I’m particularly excited about; more on that in a future blog post.

On a personal level, Earth Day is a good opportunity for me to think in a focused way about conservation.  My family recently switched to LED light bulbs, and this has me brainstorming additional ways we can work together to take small steps that will add in up a big way.

Dominion Energy shared a few fun ideas here on how to honor Earth Day this year with children. I may have to try a few of these out with my kids this week!

Since I was a child, I have loved the game of tennis.  During a time when there wasn’t much for kids to watch on television in India, I recall turning on tennis and becoming immersed in the game.  I learned by watching.  I studied the high profile players, watched their moves and motions, and followed their careers. I remember watching – and admiring – Pete Sampras as he took his career to new heights in the 1990s.

After lots of observing and plenty of practice, I walked on to the tennis team in college. Once I moved to Atlanta, which had a vibrant tennis scene, I became active in my local club, participating in tournaments as well as friendly matches. My love for the game grew from here.

Now living in the suburbs of Richmond, VA., I am a member of a local tennis club and enjoy playing in a corporate league as well. One of my absolute favorite pastimes is watching Roger Federer as he solidifies his place as one of the greatest tennis players of all time.  He’s a versatile player, excelling on hard and grass courts, he moves effortlessly on the court, and he is a class act. 

Over the years, I’ve enjoyed traveling to watch the US Open; in fact, I’ve been every year since 2008. It is a lifelong goal to go see all of the major tournaments. Now with the COVID-19 pandemic, it is particularly hard to know that some of the majors will likely be canceled this year.  It is my hope that within the next five years, I will be able to attend the French Open.

Until then, I’m having lots of fun practicing and sharing my love for the game. My five-year old son is already taking lessons!  

As I write this, the effects of COVID-19 are rippling across the country and around the globe. With such an unprecedented interruption to our lives, it’s difficult to imagine just how far reaching the impacts will be.  With 24/7 coverage of the crisis, it becomes natural to immerse yourself in reading the headlines.

I, like many Americans and others around the world, am focusing on family and our health, during these uncertain times. I’m also choosing to seek out positive content that shows how our community can come together. For example, in recent weeks, my employer Dominion Energy announced that its charitable foundation is committing $1 million to aid COVID-19 relief efforts across the U.S.  The funds will support national organizations, such as the American Red Cross, as well as address local needs. I’m keeping up with other Dominion Energy developments here. 

Keeping our families healthy and at home is most important during these times.  Wishing everyone health and peace.

As I mentioned in my previous post, for my day job I work in finance at Dominion Energy- a Fortune 500 company in the power and energy industry. This means I can be called into a variety of different projects at the company, one of which was the recent merger of Dominion and SCANA (SCE&G), a South Carolina power company. This was a very high-profile merger that attracted a lot of attention in Columbia and around the state of South Carolina. I was called in to testify before the South Carolina Public Service Commission on behalf of Dominion to respond to specific aspects of the South Carolina Office of Regulatory Staff’s alternative rate proposal. This below testimony has a lot of financial jargon, but essentially it was meant to clarify some specifics of our proposed merger and explain some of the benefits to the customers in South Carolina. While providing a public testimony isn’t the most exciting thing in the world, it was a great experience and I really like getting out of my bubble and exploring different parts of the country. Columbia, South Carolina is definitely worth a visit! Take a look below for the introductory of the testimony and you can read it in full here.

REBUTTAL TESTIMONY OF

PRABIR PUROHIT

ON BEHALF OF

DOMINION ENERGY, INC.

DOCKET NO. 2017-370-E.

Q. PLEASE STATE YOUR FULL NAME, BUSINESS ADDRESS, AND OCCUPATION.

A. My name is Prabir Purohit and my business address is 120 Tredegar Street,

Richmond, Virginia 23219. I am the Director of Mergers and Acquisitions and

Financial Analysis at Dominion Energy, Inc. (“Dominion Energy”).

Q. PLEASE STATE YOUR EDUCATIONAL BACKGROUND AND

EXPERIENCE.

A. I earned a bachelor’s degree in Aerospace Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, a master’s degree in Aerospace Engineering from Iowa State University, and a Masters of Business Administration from the Goizueta School of Business at Emory University. I have over 17 years of experience in the power and utility industry specifically related to corporate finance, capital markets, and mergers and acquisitions. I started my career at Mirant Corporation, an independent power producer, in Atlanta where I was involved in business planning and evaluation of power generating assets. Subsequently, I moved to Merrill Lynch and later Bank of America where I focused on investment banking covering the power and utility space globally. I have worked with a significant number of power and utility companies in the U.S. and globally advising on strategic M&A and capital markets financings. I joined Dominion Energy in 2016 and have been in my current role since July 2018.

Q. WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF YOUR REBUTTAL TESTIMONY?

A. The purpose of my testimony is to respond to specific aspects of the South Carolina Office of Regulatory Staff’s (“ORS”) alternative rate proposal, the “ORS Plan.” Witness James I. Warren will address certain tax matters related to the ORS Plan.

Q. PLEASE PROVIDE A BRIEF OVERVIEW OF THE CUSTOMER BENEFITS PLAN.

A. As a condition of the merger, Dominion Energy and SCE&G are requesting Commission approval of a customer benefit and cost recovery plan for the new nuclear development costs associated with the V.C. Summer Units 2 & 3 project (the “NND Project”), referenced in the Joint Petition as the Customer Benefits Plan.

The Customer Benefits Plan includes an up-front, one-time rate credit to SCE&G’s customers totaling $1.3 billion, which translates to an estimated $1,000 per residential electric customer on average, and significantly more for larger (in terms of usage) consumers in the residential, commercial, and industrial customer classes. In addition, the regulatory liabilities representing the change in the gross- up factor and the 2018 amortization of excess deferred income taxes (“EDIT”) associated with the reduction in the federal income tax rate under the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (“TCJA”) will be provided to customers as a one-time rate credit. After the merger, SCE&G will exclude from rate recovery in total approximately $1.4 billion in NND Project costs and approximately $361 million in regulatory assets related to the NND Project, removing any future customer obligation for these costs. Dominion Energy will further underwrite a $575 million refund pool for SCE&G to use to refund amounts previously collected for the NND Project that, along with the benefit of recent federal income tax reform, will allow SCE&G to provide a bill reduction that is estimated to total approximately 7% relative to May 2017 levels for a typical residential bill. The refund pool is required to keep the NND Project portion of the bill at that level for approximately eight years, after which the NND Project portion of the bill naturally reduces as a result of rate base reduction through the 20-year amortization. As discussed by Company Witness Warren, the NND Project rate base will be adjusted for certain deferred income taxes. Further, the acquisition cost of the partial replacement generation capacity for the NND Project—a $180 million investment in the gas-fired Columbia Energy Center—will be absorbed by Dominion Energy shareholders and not collected in rates. Finally, to further ensure rate stability, other than the adjustments described in the Joint Petition and my testimony, the Parties agree to freeze retail electric base rates—the non-fuel related and non-NND Project portion of rates—until at least January 1, 2021.

Read the full testimony here: https://dms.psc.sc.gov/Attachments/Matter/56cd7a31-d792-4f6a-8967-c9d0c6b81eb1

Also, don’t forget to connect with me on social media!

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