South Carolina solar gets another boost after settlement with SCE&G

South Carolina will see more solar installations thanks to a settlement reached between SCE&G and conservation groups.

After negotiations concerning the utility’s state-authorized Distributed Energy Resource programs, several agreements were reached.

• SCE&G will offer performance-based credits for solar energy generated by residential, commercial or tax-exempt customers. Residential customers will be able to earn a performance-based payment on top of net metering.
• SCE&G will provide access to community solar for people, like residents of an apartment complex, who don’t have their own roof on which to install panels. Community solar allows these customers to receive power from a shared system and get credit for the electricity generated.
• SCE&G will also seek out large-scale solar projects, aiming for at least 30 MW of utility-scale solar in place by the end of 2016.

SELC represented the South Carolina Coastal Conservation League and the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy in the negotiations.

This settlement follows closely behind the announcement of a similar agreement with Duke Energy to up its solar capacity and increase access to solar in South Carolina. The combined effect of the programs will be the development of at least 111 MW of new solar power in Duke’s South Carolina territory and 84.5 MW in SCE&G’s territory by 2021, and an increasingly strong position for South Carolina as the solar industry continues to expand in the Southeast.