FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
9/9/26
Media Contact
Adam Sledd, Executive Director
(804) 677-3885
Hampton Roads Alliance Becomes Key DEIC Supporter
Partnership will strengthen energy innovation, technology commercialization, and regional economic development across Central and Eastern Virginia
Ashland, VA – The Dominion Energy Innovation Center (DEIC) today announced the Hampton Roads Alliance (the Alliance) as a key new organizational supporter, establishing a broader partnership to advance energy innovation, technology commercialization, and economic development across Central and Eastern Virginia. The partnership connects DEIC’s statewide network of energy entrepreneurs, utilities, investors, researchers, and industry partners with the Alliance’s regional economic development capabilities and knowledge of the Hampton Roads market. Together, the organizations will help promising energy technologies move toward commercial deployment while creating stronger pathways for energy companies to locate, grow, and invest in Virginia.
DEIC supports energy companies through accelerator programming, commercialization assistance, utility and industry engagement, investor connections, and market development. The Alliance’s support will help DEIC extend that work more intentionally into Hampton Roads, where defense installations, port and maritime infrastructure, research institutions, industrial capabilities, and a growing energy ecosystem provide a strong environment for technology development and commercialization.
The relationship also advances the Energy component of the Hampton Roads Playbook, the Alliance’s shared regional economic development strategy built around the DEAL (Defense, Energy, Aerospace, and Logistics) framework. The Playbook identifies these sectors as the foundation of the region’s future growth and calls for transformative projects that strengthen workforce, innovation, infrastructure, and supply chains.
“Energy innovation is increasingly central to Virginia’s economic competitiveness and the reliability and resilience of the systems supporting our communities and industries,” stated Adam Sledd, Executive Director of the DEIC. “The Hampton Roads Alliance has developed a clear regional strategy through DEAL, and our partnership creates a direct connection between those efforts and DEIC’s work helping translate emerging technologies into deployable projects, investable companies, and real economic opportunities.”
“As we implement the Hampton Roads Playbook, partnerships like this allow us to turn regional strategy into action,” said Matt Smith, Director of Energy and Emerging Technology at the Hampton Roads Alliance. “DEIC brings deep knowledge of the energy industry and a strong industry network that complements our economic development mission and our past work around offshore wind. Together, we can help energy companies grow while strengthening Hampton Roads’ position within one of the industries at the center of DEAL.”
The partnership will support companies at multiple stages of development. Early-stage ventures may access DEIC’s accelerator and commercialization programs, while more mature firms can be connected with prospective customers, pilot and demonstration opportunities, investors, regional sites, workforce resources, and local economic developers.
At the same time, the Alliance will gain greater visibility into emerging technologies and business models that may generate future company attraction, expansion, and investment opportunities. Areas of shared interest include grid modernization, energy storage, advanced electrical systems, data center energy solutions, resilient energy infrastructure, industrial decarbonization, dual use, and other technology with potential application across key industrial sectors.
An initial component of the partnership is the Alliance’s involvement with the Strategic Cluster Advancement for Leading Energy, or SCALE, project, a GO Virginia-funded initiative led by DEIC. SCALE is an initial research and coordination effort focused on advanced electrical power systems and grid technologies across GO Virginia Regions 4 and 5. The project will complete a market and feasibility study, establish a cross-regional Energy Growth Council, and support Energy Soft Landing Sites at the DEIC and the Virginia Tech Corporate Research Center’s Secure Energy Future Center. SCALE will examine opportunities in both established power system industries and next-generation technology, including advanced conductors, alternative battery chemistries, grid analytics and orchestration, and medium- and high-voltage power electronics.
“SCALE is the first step in connecting energy innovation, supply-chain development, infrastructure, and technology commercialization with business attraction and other economic development strategies across the Greater Richmond, Gateway, and Hampton Roads regions,” said Braden Croy, Director of Ecosystem Development & Programs at the Dominion Energy Innovation Center. “Combining the DEIC’s energy knowledge and deep industry connections with the Alliance’s economic development expertise will lay the foundation for future work and create a multiplier effect for growth.”
More broadly, the DEIC-Hampton Roads Alliance partnership will create opportunities for joint company engagement, regional programming, market research, stakeholder convenings, and referrals between DEIC’s innovation network and Hampton Roads’ economic development organizations.
About the Dominion Energy Innovation Center
The Dominion Energy Innovation Center is a hub for entrepreneurial growth and innovation in Ashland, Virginia. Founded in November 2009 as a non-profit public-private partnership, the DEIC accelerates great ideas across a wide spectrum of industry sectors in addition to its focus on building the clean technology sector in Virginia. Founding partners of the Center include the signature sponsor, Dominion Energy, as well as Activation Capital, the Town of Ashland, and Hanover County.
The DEIC has been at the forefront of supporting clean energy initiatives through programs such as DEIC Accelerate, Hyperscaled, SPARK Virginia, the Greentech Network, the Energy Tech Conference, and SCALE. With over 2,000 member-innovators and 60 accelerator alumni companies that have raised over $719 million in capital and created over 700 jobs, DEIC is nurturing a thriving community dedicated to driving tomorrow’s energy solutions.
For more information, visit www.dominnovation.com.
About the Hampton Roads Alliance
The Hampton Roads Alliance is the regional economic development organization for Hampton Roads. Working with public- and private-sector partners, the Alliance supports business attraction, company expansion, and regional competitiveness. The Alliance also leads implementation of the Hampton Roads Playbook, a shared regional economic strategy focused on Defense, Energy, Aerospace, and Logistics.
To learn more, visit https://hamptonroadsalliance.com/.
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