COLUMBIA, S.C. – Central Electric Power Cooperative, Inc., has been selected to participate in a federal clean energy program that is helping rural electric utilities meet the nation’s growing demand for power.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced Oct. 25 that Central, which supplies power to 19 electric cooperatives in South Carolina, is one of six selectees for the Empowering Rural America (New ERA) program’s second round of funding.
In the coming months, Central will work with the USDA to secure up to $500 million in grants and low-interest loans to help pay for an array of clean energy projects. The funding will support the addition of roughly 700 megawatts of nuclear power, solar energy and battery storage to the statewide cooperative system, which delivers power to roughly 2 million South Carolinians in all 46 counties.
Together, these projects will generate enough electricity to power hundreds of thousands of homes for years to come, helping South Carolina’s co-ops affordably meet rising energy needs in one of the country’s fastest-growing states.
“South Carolina must produce more power to accommodate its explosive growth,” said Central CEO Rob Hochstetler. “This federal funding helps us meet those needs in a way that produces less carbon emissions while keeping energy costs as low as possible for our consumers.”
The $9.7 billion New ERA program, funded through the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act, is meant to help electric cooperatives across the country transition to cleaner forms of energy.
New ERA funding includes a mix of low- and no-interest loans as well as grants that can cover up to 25% of a project’s total cost. The selectees announced Friday morning include cooperatives that serve rural energy consumers in Arizona, Colorado, Nebraska, New Mexico, Minnesota, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas and Wyoming.
Central, based in Columbia, expects to use the money to partially cover the cost of purchasing power from several solar farms as well as the Catawba Nuclear Station in York County.
