Andre May of Dominion Energy spoke to Stafford County Public Schools on December 9, 2025.  Here are my observations:

4:03 - May used an example of a spider to explain that the Kraken is part of a web providing power to other locations who may need it in the future.  This means that the Kraken will not benefit Stafford citizens, it will not power data centers in the county, and it is proposed based on predicted power demands, not existing ones.  Although energy use in the area has not increased due to increased energy efficiency, the Trump administration thinks it might increase and is asking PJM to increase power supply. Also importantly, the Trump administration is asking for data centers to pay for the new power generation, even if they don't use it.  Does this mean data centers will pay for the Kraken?  

11:51 - May is asked about the impact of the Kraken Loop on Stafford Students.  He never answers this question fully.  He references the Dominion website, which does not answer the question either, but it does link to articles that note that the World Health Organization calls exposure to EMF radiation of the type emitted by the Kraken a carcinogen.

13:27 - In response to a board member's question about owning the land where the Kraken is proposed, May makes the incorrect claim that Dominion owns the land.  This is false.  Stafford County owns the land where the Kraken is proposed near schools.  Dominion owns an easement -- some of which was not purchased in 1965, but it was seized by eminent domain in 1969.

14:11 - May uses some double speak here that makes it sound like Dominion is beholden to the Commonwealth to build the Kraken as cheaply and as fast as possible. That's not true. The Code of Virginia says SCC has no mandate to keep power line projects cost effective. PJM/Dominion want to keep the project cheap and fast, not the Commonwealth of Virginia.  The SCC's job is to provide oversight on the historical, scenic, and health impacts on residents, and it can demand a change to or stop to projects that harm residents or historic areas.

16:15 - May tries to distract the board by implying that it is required to build power lines in the cheapest way possible.  It is not.

17:04 - May explains how the Kraken could be buried underline, but it's unclear what he's referring to.  The Chino Hills site referenced where a 500 KV line was buried, does not have vaults that require 10 acres of space.  It has stations that switch the line from underground to above ground that are larger, but the entire project is underground, with access vaults spaced at different distances along the route.  He may be referring to the temporary use of land for digging the vault and boring access points, but these should not require permanent purchase.  I could find nothing in the Chino Hills, CA, information that matches the up-down type of structure Mays describes. May says that undergrounding "may" cost as much as seven fold over overgrounding power lines, however, that's not what the actual buried line cost. The Chino Hills overground line was proposed to be https://www.dailybulletin.com/2012/12/04/edison-presents-preliminary-cost-information-on-undergrounding-power-lines-in-chino-hills /" target="_blank" rel="noopener">$172 million.  The California Public Utilities found the cost of undergrounding would be $220 million approved the undergrounding.

19:57 - May commits a verbal gaffe when he says that future technology will be able to allow transmission lines to be buried (it already exists) and accidentally implies that if the Kraken is put on hold that burying the lines may be possible.

23:31 - Board member notes that the 355 foot easement reduces the size of the proffered elementary school site to just 15.5 acres -- too small to build an elementary and middle school as proposed.

28:54 - In response to school board members who were concerned about the Kraken Loop and its effects on Stafford Schools, May displayed an image of a school in Richmond where the power lines passed near the track in attempt to silence concerns.  However, May states that the power lines in the image are distribution lines, not transmission lines.  The Kraken loop is a 500 kV distribution line, carrying far, far more energy. This was a deflection that did not actually address the concerns of the board regarding transmission lines.

30:09 - May describes a way that Dominion can put the poles on the outside of school property to mitigate the visual effects of the Kraken.  This does not address School Board members' concerns about HEALTH, however.  Power lines sag. If the poles are placed outside school property, the lines will actually be closer to Stafford students, and will actually expose them to more EMF radiation.

31:19 - School board member lists the Stafford schools directly affected by the Kraken:  Mountain View High School, (Margaret Brent Elementary), Rodney Thompson Middle School, HH Poole Middle School, and a proposed school site in Aquia.

31:53 - Concerns about what happens when school property is damaged by Dominion equipment are not directly addressed.

33:59 - May confirms that the Kraken cannot be tapped in to to provide power to data centers in Stafford County. On October 10, 2025, during Dominion's online meeting, rep Bob confirmed that data centers in Loudon county and other locations are driving the need for the Kraken, not power usage in Stafford County.

Questions May could not answer:

 - How much of the Kraken is in Stafford County?

 - How tall will the towers be? He guessed 130-160, which is incorrect. (This was answered in the October 10, 2025, meeting -- Sergio rep from Dominion said the towers would be about 170 feet)

 - May would not commit to any public meetings.