UNDERWRITING AGREEMENT

Exhibit 1.1

VIRGINIA ELECTRIC AND POWER COMPANY

$600,000,000 2008 Series A 5.40% Senior Notes due 2018

UNDERWRITING AGREEMENT

April 14, 2008

Barclays Capital Inc.

Greenwich Capital Markets, Inc.

Wachovia Capital Markets, LLC

as Representatives for the Underwriters

listed in Schedule I hereto

c/o Barclays Capital Inc.

200 Park Avenue

New York, New York 10166

Greenwich Capital Markets, Inc.

600 Steamboat Road

Greenwich, Connecticut 06830

Wachovia Capital Markets, LLC

One Wachovia Center, DC-7

301 South College Street

Charlotte, North Carolina 28288-0602

Ladies and Gentlemen:

The undersigned, Virginia Electric and Power Company (the Company), hereby confirms its agreement with the several Underwriters named in Schedule I hereto (the Agreement) with respect to the issuance and sale to the several Underwriters named in Schedule I of certain of the Company’s 2008 Series A 5.40% Senior Notes due 2018 (the Senior Notes) specified in Schedule II hereto, and the public offering thereof by the several Underwriters, upon the terms specified in Schedule II. Capitalized terms used herein without definition shall be used as defined in the Prospectus (as hereinafter defined).

1. Underwriters and Representatives . The term “Underwriters” as used herein shall be deemed to mean the several persons, firms or corporations (including the Representatives hereinafter mentioned) named in Schedule I hereto, and the term “Representatives” as used herein shall be deemed to mean the Representatives to whom this Agreement is addressed, who

by signing this Agreement represent that they have been authorized by the other Underwriters to execute this Agreement on their behalf and to act for them in the manner herein provided. If there shall be only one person, firm or corporation named as an addressee above, the term “Representatives” as used herein shall mean that person, firm or corporation. If there shall be only one person, firm or corporation named in Schedule I hereto, the term “Underwriters” as used herein shall mean that person, firm or corporation. All obligations of the Underwriters hereunder are several and not joint. Unless otherwise stated, any action under or in respect of this Agreement taken by the Representatives will be binding upon all the Underwriters.

2. Description of the Senior Notes . Schedule II specifies the aggregate principal amount of the Senior Notes, the initial public offering price of the Senior Notes, and the purchase price to be paid by the Underwriters and sets forth the date, time and manner of delivery of the Senior Notes and payment therefor. Schedule II also specifies (to the extent not set forth in Sections 4 and 5 herein, or in the Registration Statement, Time of Sale Information or Prospectus, each such term as defined below) the terms and provisions for the purchase of such Senior Notes. The Senior Notes will be issued under the Company’s Senior Indenture dated as of June 1, 1998 between the Company and The Bank of New York (successor to JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. (formerly known as The Chase Manhattan Bank)), as Trustee (the Trustee), as previously supplemented and as further supplemented by an Eighteenth Supplemental Indenture dated as of April 1, 2008 (collectively, the Indenture).

3A. Representations and Warranties of the Company . The Company represents and warrants to, and agrees with, the Underwriters that:

(a) A registration statement, No. 333-130932 on Form S-3 for the registration of the Senior Notes under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the Securities Act), heretofore filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the Commission) has become effective. Such registration statement (i) is an “automatic shelf registration statement” as defined in Rule 405 under the Securities Act and (ii) became effective not earlier than three years prior to the Closing Date (as defined below), and the Company has not received any notice of objection of the Commission to the use of such registration statement or any post-effective amendment thereto pursuant to Rule 401(g)(2) under the Securities Act. As used herein, “Registration Statement” means, at any given time, such registration statement including the amendments thereto up to such time, the exhibits and any schedules thereto at such time, the Incorporated Documents (as defined below) at such time and documents otherwise deemed to be a part thereof or included therein at such time pursuant to the Rules and Regulations (as defined below); “Rule 430B Information” means information that was omitted from the Registration Statement at the time it became effective but that is deemed to be part of and included in the Registration Statement pursuant to Rule 430B under the Securities Act; “Base Prospectus” means the base prospectus included in the Registration Statement; “Preliminary Prospectus” means the Base Prospectus and any prospectus supplement used in connection with the offering of the Senior Notes that omitted the Rule 430B Information and is used prior to the filing of the Prospectus (as defined below); “Prospectus” means the prospectus supplement to the Base Prospectus that is first filed after the execution hereof pursuant to Rule 424(b) under the Securities Act, together with the Base Prospectus, as amended at the time of such filing; and “Prospectus Supplement” means the prospectus supplement to the Base

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Prospectus included in the Prospectus. As used herein, the terms “Registration Statement,” “Base Prospectus,” “Preliminary Prospectus,” “Prospectus” and “Prospectus Supplement” include all documents (including any Current Report on Form 8-K) incorporated therein by reference, whether such incorporated documents are filed before or after the date of such Registration Statement or Prospectus (collectively, the Incorporated Documents). When such Incorporated Documents are filed after the date of the document into which they are incorporated, they shall be deemed included therein from the date of filing of such Incorporated Documents.

At or before 2:45 p.m. on the date hereof (the Time of Sale), the Company had prepared the following information in connection with the offering (collectively, the Time of Sale Information): the Base Prospectus dated January 9, 2006, each Preliminary Prospectus, the Final Term Sheet (as defined in Section 6(a)) and any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus (as defined in Section 3A(c)) listed on Schedule VI hereto. Notwithstanding any provision hereof to the contrary, each document included in the Time of Sale Information shall be deemed to include all documents (including any Current Report on Form 8-K) incorporated therein by reference, whether any such Incorporated Document is filed before or after the document into which it is incorporated, so long as the Incorporated Document is filed before the Time of Sale.

(b) No order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement or otherwise preventing or suspending the use of the Prospectus has been issued by the Commission and is in effect and no proceedings for that purpose or pursuant to Section 8A of the Securities Act against the Company or related to the offering are pending before or, to the knowledge of the Company, threatened by the Commission. The Registration Statement and the Prospectus comply in all material respects with the provisions of the Securities Act, the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the Securities Exchange Act), the Trust Indenture Act of 1939, as amended (the Trust Indenture Act), and the rules, regulations and releases of the Commission under the Securities Act, the Securities Exchange Act and the Trust Indenture Act (the Rules and Regulations); neither the Registration Statement on any date on which it has been deemed to have become effective (the Effective Date), the Prospectus at the time it was issued nor the Time of Sale Information at the Time of Sale contained or contains an untrue statement of a material fact or omitted or omits to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading; and, on the Closing Date (as defined below), the Registration Statement and the Prospectus (including any amendments and supplements thereto) will conform in all respects to the requirements of the Securities Act, the Securities Exchange Act, the Trust Indenture Act and the Rules and Regulations, and none of the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Information, the Issuer Free Writing Prospectuses (as supplemented by and taken together with the Time of Sale Information) or the Prospectus will include any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state any material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading; provided, that the foregoing representations and warranties in this Section 3A(b) shall not apply to statements in or omissions from the Registration Statement, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, the Time of Sale Information or the Prospectus made in reliance upon information furnished herein or in writing to the Company by the Underwriters or on the Underwriters’ behalf through the

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Representatives for use in the Registration Statement, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, the Time of Sale Information or the Prospectus or the part of the Registration Statement which constitutes the Trustee’s Statement of Eligibility under the Trust Indenture Act; and provided further, that, except as otherwise provided in Section 3A(a) with respect to the Time of Sale Information, the foregoing representations and warranties are given on the basis that any statement contained in an Incorporated Document shall be deemed not to be contained in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Information or the Prospectus if the statement has been modified or superseded by any statement in a subsequently filed Incorporated Document or in the Registration Statement or the Prospectus or in any amendment or supplement thereto.

(c) Other than the Base Prospectus, any Preliminary Prospectus, the documents listed on Schedule VI, the Prospectus, or any document not constituting a prospectus under Section 2(a)(10)(a) of the Securities Act or Rule 134 under the Securities Act, the Company (including its agents and representatives, other than the Underwriters in their capacity as such) has not made, used, prepared, authorized, approved or referred to and will not prepare, make, use, authorize, approve or refer to, any “written communication” (as defined in Rule 405 under the Securities Act) that constitutes an offer to sell or solicitation of an offer to buy the Senior Notes, unless such written communication is approved in writing in advance by the Representatives. To the extent any such written communication constitutes an “issuer free writing prospectus” (as defined in Rule 433 under the Securities Act and referred to herein as an Issuer Free Writing Prospectus), such Issuer Free Writing Prospectus complied or will comply in all material respects with the requirements of Rule 433(c) and, if the filing thereof is required pursuant to Rule 433, such filing has been or will be made in the manner and within the time period required by Rule 433(d). The Company will, pursuant to reasonable procedures developed in good faith, retain copies of each such Issuer Free Writing Prospectus in accordance with Rule 433 under the Securities Act.

(d) If, at any time following issuance of an Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, any event occurred or occurs as a result of which such Issuer Free Writing Prospectus conflicted or conflicts with the information contained in the Registration Statement, the Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus, the Company (i) has promptly notified or will promptly notify the Underwriters through the Representatives of such conflict and, (ii) at its expense, has promptly amended or supplemented or will promptly amend or supplement such Issuer Free Writing Prospectus to eliminate or correct such conflict; provided, that the foregoing representations and warranties in this Section 3A(d) shall not apply to conflicts arising from statements in or omissions from any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus made in reliance upon information furnished herein or in writing to the Company by the Underwriters or on the Underwriters’ behalf through the Representatives for use in such Issuer Free Writing Prospectus.

(e) Except as reflected in, or contemplated by, the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Information and the Prospectus (exclusive of any amendments or supplements after the date hereof), since the respective most recent dates as of which information is given in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Information and the Prospectus (exclusive of any amendments or supplements after the date hereof), there has

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not been any material adverse change or event which would result in a material adverse effect on the condition of the Company and its subsidiaries taken as a whole, financial or otherwise (a Material Adverse Effect). The Company and its subsidiaries taken as a whole have no material contingent financial obligation which is not disclosed in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Information or the Prospectus.

(f) Deloitte & Touche LLP, who has audited certain of the Company’s financial statements filed with the Commission and incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement, is an independent registered public accounting firm as required by the Securities Act and the Rules and Regulations.

(g) There are no Significant Subsidiaries of the Company as such term is defined in Rule 1-02 of Regulation S-X.

(h) The execution, delivery and performance of this Agreement, the Indenture, and the Senior Notes, the consummation of the transactions contemplated in this Agreement and in the Registration Statement (including the issuance and sale of the Senior Notes and the use of the proceeds from the sale of the Senior Notes as described in the Prospectus under the caption “Use of Proceeds”) and compliance by the Company with its obligations under this Agreement, the Indenture and the Senior Notes do not and will not, whether with or without the giving of notice or lapse of time or both, conflict with or constitute a breach of or default under, or result in the creation or imposition of any lien, charge or encumbrance upon any property or assets of the Company or any subsidiary pursuant to any contract, indenture, mortgage, deed of trust, loan or credit agreement, note, lease or any other agreement or instrument, to which the Company or any subsidiary is a party or by which it or any of them may be bound, or to which any of the property or assets of the Company or any subsidiary is subject (except for such conflicts, breaches or defaults or liens, charges or encumbrances that would not have a Material Adverse Effect), nor will such action result in any violation of the provisions of the charter or bylaws of the Company or any subsidiary, or any applicable law, statute, rule, regulation, judgment, order, writ or decree of any government, government instrumentality or court, domestic or foreign, having jurisdiction over the Company or any subsidiary or any of their respective properties, assets or operations, and the Company has full power and authority to authorize, issue and sell the Senior Notes as contemplated by this Agreement.

(i) The Company is not, and, after giving effect to the offering and sale of the Senior Notes and the application of the proceeds thereof as described in the Time of Sale Information or the Prospectus, will not be, an “investment company” or a company “controlled” by an “investment company” which is required to be registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended.

(j) The Company is a “well-known seasoned issuer,” and is not, and has not been since the filing of the Registration Statement, an “ineligible issuer,” both terms as defined in Rule 405 under the Securities Act. The Company has paid the registration fee for this offering of Senior Notes pursuant to Rule 456(b)(1) under the Securities Act or will pay such fees within the time period required by such rule (without giving effect to the proviso therein) and in any event prior to the Closing Date.

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3B. Representations and Warranties of the Underwriters . Each of the Underwriters represents and warrants to, and agrees with, the Company that:

(a) In relation to each member state of the European Economic Area which has implemented the Prospectus Directive (as defined below), with effect from and including the date on which the Prospectus Directive is implemented in that member state, it has not made and will not make an offer of Senior Notes to the public in that member state, prior to the publication of a prospectus in relation to the Senior Notes which has been approved by the competent authority in that member state or, where appropriate, approved in another member state and notified to the competent authority in that member state, all in accordance with the Prospectus Directive, except that it may, with effect from and including such date, make an offer of Senior Notes to the public in that member state at any time (i) to legal entities which are authorized or regulated to operate in the financial markets or, if not so authorized or regulated, whose corporate purpose is solely to invest in securities; (ii) to any legal entity which has two or more of (1) an average of at least 250 employees during the last financial year; (2) a total balance sheet of more than €43,000,000 and (3) an annual net turnover of more than €50,000,000, as shown in its last annual or consolidated accounts; (iii) to fewer than 100 natural or legal persons (other than qualified investors as defined in the Prospectus Directive) subject to obtaining the prior consent of the representatives for any such offer; or (iv) in any other circumstances which do not require the publication by the Company of a prospectus pursuant to Article 3 of the Prospectus Directive.

For the purposes of the above, the expression an “offer of Senior Notes to the public” in relation to any Senior Notes in any member state means the communication in any form and by any means of sufficient information on the terms of the offer and the Senior Notes to be offered so as to enable an investor to decide to acquire the Senior Notes, as the same may be varied in that member state by any measure implementing the Prospectus Directive in that member state and the expression “Prospectus Directive” means Directive 2003/71/EC and includes any relevant implementing measure in that member state.

(b) It has only communicated or caused to be communicated and will only communicate or cause to be communicated an invitation or inducement to engage in investment activity (within the meaning of Section 21 of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000) received by it in connection with the issue or sale of the Senior Notes in circumstances in which Section 21(1) of such Act does not apply to the Company and it has complied and will comply with all applicable provisions of such Act with respect to anything done by it in relation to any Senior Notes in, from or otherwise involving the United Kingdom.

(c) It has not offered or sold, and will not offer or sell, any Senior Notes by means of any document other than (i) in circumstances which do not constitute an offer to the public within the meaning of the Companies Ordinance (Cap. 32, Laws of Hong Kong),

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or (ii) to “professional investors” within the meaning of the Securities and Futures Ordinance (Cap. 571, Laws of Hong Kong) and any rules made thereunder, or (iii) in other circumstances which do not result in the document being a “prospectus” within the meaning of the Companies Ordinance (Cap. 32, Laws of Hong Kong), and no advertisement, invitation or document relating to the Senior Notes may be issued or may be in the possession of any person for the purpose of issue (in each case whether in Hong Kong or elsewhere), which is directed at, or the contents of which are likely to be accessed or read by, the public in Hong Kong (except if permitted to do so under the laws of Hong Kong) other than with respect to Senior Notes which are or are intended to be disposed of only to persons outside Hong Kong or only to “professional investors” within the meaning of the Securities and Futures Ordinance (Cap. 571, Laws of Hong Kong) and any rules made thereunder.

(d) The Senior Notes have not been and will not be registered under the Securities and Exchange Law of Japan (the Securities and Exchange Law) and each Underwriter hereby represents and agrees that it has not offered or sold, and it will not offer or sell any Senior Notes, directly or indirectly, in Japan or to, or for the benefit of, any resident of Japan (which term as used herein means any person resident in Japan, including any corporation or other entity organized under the laws of Japan), or to others for re-offering or resale, directly or indirectly, in Japan or to a resident of Japan, except pursuant to an exemption from the registration requirements of, and otherwise in compliance with, the Securities and Exchange Law and any other applicable laws, regulations and ministerial guidelines of Japan.

(e) The Prospectus Supplement has not been registered as a prospectus with the Monetary Authority of Singapore. Accordingly, the Prospectus Supplement and any other document or material in connection with the offer or sale, or invitation for subscription or purchase, of the Senior Notes may not be circulated or distributed, nor may the Senior Notes be offered or sold, or be made the subject of an invitation for subscription or purchase, whether directly or indirectly, to persons in Singapore other than (i) to an institutional investor under Section 274 of the Securities and Futures Act, Chapter 289 of Singapore (the SFA), (ii) to a relevant person, or any person pursuant to Section 275(1A), and in accordance with the conditions, specified in Section 275 of the SFA or (iii) otherwise pursuant to, and in accordance with the conditions of, any other applicable provision of the SFA.

Where the Senior Notes are subscribed or purchased under Section 275 by a relevant person which is: (a) a corporation (which is not an accredited investor) the sole business of which is to hold investments and the entire share capital of which is owned by one or more individuals, each of whom is an accredited investor; or (b) a trust (where the trustee is not an accredited investor) whose sole purpose is to hold investments and each beneficiary is an accredited investor, shares, debentures and units of shares and debentures of that corporation or the beneficiaries’ rights and interest in that trust shall not be transferable for 6 months after that corporation or that trust has acquired the Senior Notes under Section 275 except: (1) to an institutional investor under Section 274 of the SFA or to a relevant person, or any person pursuant to Section 275(1A), and in accordance with the conditions, specified in Section 275 of the SFA; (2) where no consideration is given for the transfer; or (3) by operation of law.

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(f) It has not made and will not make, unless approved in writing in advance by the Company and the Representatives, any offer relating to the Senior Notes that would constitute a “free writing prospectus” (as defined in Rule 405 under the Securities Act and referred to herein as a Free Writing Prospectus) that would be required to be filed with the Commission under Rule 433 under the Securities Act. Notwithstanding the foregoing, it may use a free writing prospectus that is (i) the Final Term Sheet; (ii) an Issuer Free Writing Prospectus listed on Schedule VI or otherwise approved in writing in advance by the Representatives pursuant to Section 3A(c) above or (iii) one or more term sheets relating to the Senior Notes that do not contain substantive changes from or additions to the Final Term Sheet. The Representatives and the Company agree that any such term sheets described in clause (iii) above will not constitute Issuer Free Writing Prospectuses for purposes of this Agreement.

(g) It will, pursuant to reasonable procedures developed in good faith, retain copies of each Free Writing Prospectus used or referred to by it, in accordance with Rule 433 under the Securities Act.

(h) It is not subject to any pending proceeding under Section 8A of the Securities Act with respect to the offering (and will promptly notify the Company if any such proceeding is initiated against it during the period of time after the first date of the public offering of the Senior Notes that a prospectus relating to the Senior Notes is required by law to be delivered (or required to be delivered but for Rule 172 under the Securities Act) in connection with sales of the Senior Notes by an Underwriter or dealer (the Prospectus Delivery Period)). Whether the Prospectus Delivery Period is ongoing for purposes of this Section 3B(h) shall be determined by the opinion of Troutman Sanders LLP.

4. Purchase and Public Offering . On the basis of the representations and warranties herein contained, but subject to the terms and conditions in this Agreement set forth, the Company agrees to sell to each of the Underwriters, and each Underwriter agrees, severally and not jointly, to purchase from the Company, at the price, place and time hereinafter specified, the principal amount of the Senior Notes set forth opposite the name of such Underwriter in Schedule I hereto. The Underwriters agree to make a public offering of their respective Senior Notes specified in Schedule I hereto at the initial public offering price specified in Schedule II hereto. It is understood that after such initial offering the several Underwriters reserve the right to vary the offering price and further reserve the right to withdraw, cancel or modify any subsequent offering without notice.

The Company shall not be obligated to deliver any of the Senior Notes, except upon payment for all of the Senior Notes to be purchased on the Closing Date.

5. Time and Place of Closing . Delivery of the certificate(s) for the Senior Notes and payment therefor by the Representatives for the accounts of the several Underwriters shall be made at the time, place and date specified in Schedule II or such other time, place and date as the

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Representatives and the Company may agree upon in writing, and subject to the provisions of Section 10 hereof. The hour and date of such delivery and payment are herein called the “Closing Date.” On the Closing Date, the Company, through the facilities of The Depository Trust Company (DTC), shall deliver or cause to be delivered a securities entitlement with respect to the Senior Notes to the Representatives for the accounts of each Underwriter against payment of the purchase price by wire transfer of same day funds to a bank account designated by the Company. Time shall be of the essence, and delivery at the time and place specified pursuant to this Agreement is a further condition of the obligation of each Underwriter hereunder. Upon delivery, the Senior Notes shall be registered in the name of Cede & Co., as nominee for DTC.

6. Covenants of the Company . The Company agrees that:

(a) The Company will file the final Prospectus with the Commission within the time periods specified by Rule 424(b) and Rule 430B under the Securities Act; will prepare a final term sheet, substantially in the form of Schedule VI hereto (the Final Term Sheet) and file such Final Term Sheet in compliance with Rule 433(d) under the Securities Act; will file any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus to the extent required by Rule 433 under the Securities Act; and will file promptly all reports and any definitive proxy or information statements required to be filed by the Company with the Commission pursuant to Section 13(a), 13(c), 14 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act after the date of the Prospectus and within the Prospectus Delivery Period. The Company will pay the registration fees for this offering within the time period required by Rule 456(b)(i) under the Securities Act and, in any event, prior to the Closing Date.

(b) If the Representatives so request, the Company, on or prior to the Closing Date, will deliver to the Representatives conformed copies of the Registration Statement as originally filed, including all exhibits, any Preliminary Prospectus, the Final Term Sheet, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, the Prospectus and all amendments and supplements to each such document, in each case as soon as available and in such quantities as are reasonably requested by the Representatives. The Representatives will be deemed to have made such a request for copies for each of the several Underwriters and Troutman Sanders LLP, counsel to the Underwriters, with respect to any such documents that are not electronically available through the Commission’s EDGAR filing system.

(c) The Company will pay all expenses in connection with (i) the preparation and filing by it of the Registration Statement, any Preliminary Prospectus, the Final Term Sheet, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus and the Prospectus, (ii) the preparation, issuance and delivery of the Senior Notes, (iii) any fees and expenses of the Trustee and (iv) the printing and delivery (by first class mail) to the Underwriters, in reasonable quantities, of copies of the Registration Statement, any Preliminary Prospectus, the Final Term Sheet, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus and the Prospectus (each as originally filed and as subsequently amended). In addition, the Company will pay the reasonable out-of-pocket fees and disbursements of Troutman Sanders LLP, counsel to the Underwriters, in connection with the qualification of the Senior Notes under state securities or blue sky laws or investment laws (if and to the extent such qualification is required by the Underwriters or the Company).

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(d) If, during the time when a prospectus relating to the Senior Notes is required to be delivered under the Securities Act, any event occurs as a result of which (i) the Prospectus, the Final Term Sheet or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus as then amended or supplemented would include an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state any material fact necessary to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading; or (ii) it is necessary at any time to amend the Prospectus, the Final Term Sheet or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus to comply with the Securities Act, the Company promptly will (y) notify the Underwriters through the Representatives to suspend solicitation of purchases of the Senior Notes and, (z) at its expense, prepare and file with the Commission an amendment or supplement which will correct such statement or omission or an amendment which will effect such compliance. During the period specified above, the Company will continue to prepare and file with the Commission on a timely basis all documents or amendments required under the Securities Exchange Act and the applicable rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder; provided, that the Company shall not file such documents or amendments without also furnishing copies thereof to the Representatives and Troutman Sanders LLP. Any such documents or amendments which are electronically available through the Commission’s EDGAR filing system shall be deemed to have been furnished by the Company to the Representatives and Troutman Sanders LLP.

(e) The Company will advise the Representatives promptly of any proposal to amend or supplement the Registration Statement or the Prospectus and will afford the Representatives a reasonable opportunity to comment on any such proposed amendment or supplement prior to filing; and the Company will also advise the Representatives promptly of the filing of any such amendment or supplement, of the institution by the Commission of any stop order proceedings in respect of the Registration Statement or of any part thereof, or of receipt from the Commission of any notice of objection to the use of the Registration Statement or any supplement or amendment thereto pursuant to Rule 401(g)(2) under the Securities Act, and will use its best efforts to prevent the issuance of any such stop order or any such notice of objection and to obtain as soon as possible their lifting, if issued.

(f) The Company will make generally available to its security holders, as soon as it is practicable to do so, an earnings statement of the Company (in reasonable detail, in form complying with the provisions of Rule 158 under the Securities Act and which need not be audited), covering a period of at least 12 months beginning within three months after the “effective date” (as defined in Rule 158 under the Securities Act) of the Registration Statement, which earnings statement shall satisfy the requirements of Section 11(a) of the Securities Act.

(g) The Company will furnish such information as may be lawfully required and otherwise cooperate in qualifying the Senior Notes for offer and sale under the securities or blue sky laws of such jurisdictions as the Representatives may designate; provided, however, that the Company shall not be required in any state to qualify as a foreign corporation, or to file a general consent to service of process, or to submit to any requirements which it deems unduly burdensome.

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(h) Fees and disbursements of Troutman Sanders LLP, who is acting as counsel for the Underwriters, (exclusive of fees and disbursements of Troutman Sanders LLP which are to be paid as set forth in Section 6(c)) shall be paid by the Underwriters; provided, however, that if this Agreement is terminated in accordance with the provisions of Sections 7 or 8 hereof, the Company shall reimburse the Representatives for the account of the Underwriters for the amount of such fees and disbursements.

(i) During the period beginning on the date of this Agreement and continuing to and including the Closing Date, the Company will not, without the prior written consent of the Representatives, directly or indirectly, sell or offer to sell or otherwise dispose of any Senior Notes or any security convertible into or exchangeable for Senior Notes or any debt securities substantially similar to Senior Notes (except for the Senior Notes issued pursuant to this Agreement).

7. Conditions of Underwriters’ Obligations; Termination by the Underwriters .

(a) The obligations of the Underwriters to purchase and pay for the Senior Notes on the Closing Date shall be subject to the following conditions:

(i) No stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement shall be in effect on the Closing Date and no proceedings for that purpose shall be pending before or, to the knowledge of the Company, threatened by the Commission on such date. The Representatives shall have received, prior to payment for the Senior Notes, a certificate dated the Closing Date and signed by the President or any Vice President of the Company to the effect that no such stop order is in effect and that no proceedings for such purpose are pending before or, to the knowledge of the Company, threatened by the Commission.

(ii) The relevant order or orders of the State Corporation Commission of Virginia authorizing the issuance and sale of the Senior Notes, a copy of which has been provided to the Representatives, shall be