[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”3.0.91″ custom_padding=”0px|0px|0px|0px” next_background_color=”#000000″][et_pb_row custom_padding=”2px|0px|8px|0px” _builder_version=”3.0.47″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text admin_label=”Caption 1″ _builder_version=”3.20.1″ text_font=”|600|||||||” text_font_size=”12px” text_line_height=”1.4em” custom_margin=”8px|||2px” custom_padding=”|||”]<\/p>\n
The solar installation on Frank Knapp’s Gervais Street office building generates enough energy per month to save him an average of 50 percent on his electricity bill, but it cost more than a new car.\u00a0<\/p>\n
[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”3.0.92″ custom_padding=”2px|0px|37.9062px|0px” prev_background_color=”#000000″][et_pb_row custom_padding=”0px|0px|18.9531px|0px” custom_margin=”10px|||” _builder_version=”3.0.92″][et_pb_column type=”2_3″][et_pb_text admin_label=”News Story” _builder_version=”3.20.1″ custom_margin=”0px||0px|”]<\/p>\n
If you are thinking of installing solar panels on your home to save on your power bill, the time may be right as South Carolina solar experts work to break the electrical monopoly and let the sun shine in.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Legislation moving through the South Carolina Legislature aims to \u201cstreamline\u201d the solar industry by removing roadblocks utilities have put up to hinder production of large scale solar power.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThe utilities have a robust red tape system for these large solar farms to connect to the grid,\u201d said Tommy Gardiner, communications director for Conservation Voters of South Carolina. That system\u00a0makes it difficult for solar operations to efficiently put their energy on the public grid. \u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThis bill streamlines that process and it helps guarantee that those large solar rays can be put on the grid faster,\u201d Gardiner said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Since\u00a0Gov. Nikki Haley opened up the solar market in S.C. in 2014, billions in investments and thousands of jobs have been created on the utility level of solar energy. But a utility\u2019s business model is not conducive to renewable, long-term solar energy production,<\/span>\u00a0because its energy is produced by a contractor, not the utilities themselves.<\/p>\n Matt Moore, a Republican strategist and chair of the Palmetto Conservative Solar Coalition, said that utility-scale solar is more than an environmental plus.<\/p>\n \u201cMost people want a choice when it comes to power. Traditionally, it\u2019s been tied to utilities and we see one rate, one bill, there are no questions asked,\u201d Moore said.<\/p>\n The Palmetto Conservative Solar Coalition is a bipartisan group of homeowners and business owners from across the state. The conservative push for solar isn\u2019t unique to South Carolina because it\u2019s good business.<\/p>\n \u201cThere are about 3,000 solar jobs in South Carolina,\u201d Moore said. \u201cThat\u2019s from zero five years ago to about 3,000\u2026 it\u2019s a growing industry that attracts skilled workers.\u201d<\/p>\n Steffanie Dohn is the Director of government relations for Southern Current, a solar developer based in Charleston. She also serves on the board of the S.C. Solar Business Council. Dohn said solar developers are prepared to invest upwards of $5 billion over the next three years in South Carolina. Most of that money would go to building large solar farms in rural, sunny communities throughout the state.<\/p>\n The investments would produce property tax revenue for the mostly low-income, rural communities where the farms would be located. Another plus? The projects don\u2019t put a strain on public resources.<\/p>\n \u201cSolar panels don\u2019t go to school,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Apart from the economic impact, the solar industry would offer \u201cenergy freedom,\u201d according to Alan Hancock, energy and climate advocacy director for the Coastal Conservation League.<\/p>\n \u201cCompetition in energy is important, especially in the wake of V.C. Summer,\u201d Hancock said.<\/p>\n The failed Fairfield County nuclear reactor project cost customers of state-owned utility company Santee Cooper and Cayce-based SCANA, parent company of SCE&G, $9 billion, sinking Santee Cooper into bankruptcy and forcing the sale of SCE&G. \u00a0On March 20, S.C. Senate President Harvey Peeler called for Santee Cooper to be sold off because of the incompetency of its leaders.<\/p>\n Gardiner, who worked with Hancock and others to make the compromise version of the bill, said the utilities grip on the S.C. energy market will loosen.<\/p>\n \u201cAt its core, this bill is about market competition\u2026 and allowing everybody to have access to the same kinds of things so utilities don\u2019t have the monopoly-like control that they\u2019ve had for generations,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Although most of the frustrations with solar insiders stem from utilities, SCE&G has made considerable headway in solar.<\/p>\n The utility has contracts to buy energy from two Dominion Energy-owned solar utility-scale projects. Dominion purchased SCE&G last year after the VC Summer debacle.<\/p>\n In a statement from the company, SCE&G said they have \u201ccontracted for a significant amount of solar in the last several years.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThis helps the company meet our goal to create the best energy options for all of our customers while working in the best interest of South Carolina,\u201d the statement concluded.<\/p>\n The company worked with legislators and environmental groups on the energy bill, which was passed by the House unanimously in February.<\/p>\n Moore is hoping the Senate will pass the bill in the next few weeks. Gov. Henry McMaster is expected to sign the legislation.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cPeople can find true energy freedom. And that\u2019s what we\u2019re fighting for, this is an issue of freedom, it\u2019s an issue of lower power bills and giving people a choice,\u201d Moore said.<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_3″][et_pb_image admin_label=”Image 1″ show_in_lightbox=”on” show_bottom_space=”off” _builder_version=”3.20.1″ custom_margin=”||2px|” custom_padding=”|||” animation_style=”slide” box_shadow_style=”preset2″ box_shadow_horizontal=”4px” box_shadow_vertical=”4px” src=”http:\/\/carolinanewsandreporter.cic.sc.edu\/test\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/solarw4.jpg”]<\/p>\n \n <\/p>\n [\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text admin_label=”Caption 1″ _builder_version=”3.20.1″ text_font=”|600|||||||” text_font_size=”12px” text_line_height=”1.4em” custom_margin=”8px|||2px” custom_padding=”|||”]<\/p>\n The Palmetto Conservative Solar Coalition is one of many advocacy groups hoping to advance the solar energy industry in South Carolina. Since lawmakers opened the state up to large-scale solar investment in 2014, billions of dollars and thousands of jobs have been generated.\u00a0<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" New legislations sets S.C. solar to bring in billions in outside investments. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":167,"featured_media":19455,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"on","_et_pb_old_content":" [et_pb_section bb_built=\"1\" _builder_version=\"3.0.91\" custom_padding=\"0px|0px|0px|0px\" next_background_color=\"#000000\"][et_pb_row custom_padding=\"2px|0px|8px|0px\" _builder_version=\"3.0.47\" background_size=\"initial\" background_position=\"top_left\" background_repeat=\"repeat\"][et_pb_column type=\"4_4\"][et_pb_text admin_label=\"Featured Image caption\" _builder_version=\"3.12.1\" text_font=\"|600|||||||\" 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