South Carolina electric cooperatives announce new rate for data centers

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COLUMBIA, S.C. (WIS) - All 19 of South Carolina’s electric cooperatives have adopted new electric rates for data centers and other major electricity users across the state.

The Central Electric Cooperative Board, which is made up of members from all of South Carolina’s co-ops, voted unanimously to formalize a standard rate for all major electricity users and data centers that are currently in operation or in the process of being constructed.

“Data centers can bring significant benefits to the power grid, creating efficiencies and paying for system costs that otherwise would have been borne by South Carolina co-op members. Our job is to maximize those benefits while minimizing risks and costs to our co-ops and the South Carolinians they serve,” Central CEO Rob Hochstetler said in a statement. “Our responsibility is to secure reliable electricity at the best price for the 2 million South Carolinians who rely on electric cooperatives for power. This new policy helps accomplish that goal.”

The new rate, which only applies to larger consumers who need 20 megawatts of electricity or more, has multiple protections for other consumers, which include:

• 15-year minimum contracts with penalties if it is terminated early
• Prepayment for electric infrastructure upgrades
• Provisions for scaling down use during energy shortages
• Financial security requirements, including cash deposits
• Monthly energy demand minimums to ensure enough revenue is generated to cover required system costs

“All of our ratemaking decisions are about fairness,” Berl Davis, chairman of Central’s board and CEO of Palmetto Electric Cooperative, said in a statement. “South Carolina families and businesses shouldn’t subsidize the energy costs of major corporations. We have always recognized and ensured our rates were consistent with that ideal, and this rate reinforces that approach.”

South Carolina’s co-ops currently provide power to one data center, and the three others under construction have contracts that include the new rate and the protections that come with it.

Central Electric said the new rates require long-term commitments from major energy users to ensure South Carolina’s electric grid operates properly and that the co-ops have enough money to invest in upgrades, including transmission lines and additional substations.

“We need accurate plans and solid commitments from large consumers so the right facilities are built at the right time and for the right price,” Hochstetler said in a statement. “This will help us keep South Carolina open for business and protect our members from unnecessary costs while we invest in the reliability of our power grid.”

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