Santee Cooper signs renewable energy contract with Green Energy Solutions
January 23, 2012
MONCKS CORNER, SC – January 23, 2012 – Santee Cooper’sboard of directors approved a contract today with Green Energy Solutions (GES) forup to 25 megawatts of electricity generated from renewable resources in SouthCarolina.
Alabama-based GES will in turn executeagreements with individual farms to make up the 25 MWs of electricity. The firstsite will be a 540-kilowatt station at Cypress Poultry Farm near Manning,expected to be online in January 2013, with similar anaerobic digester projectscoming online at farms across the state over the next six years. The fuelsource will be biogas produced through anaerobic digestion of poultry, swine,cow and other organic agricultural waste.
Depending on the size of eachproject, GES could work with 50 or more farms across South Carolina to providethe 25 MWs. Santee Cooper now has more than 200 MWs of renewable electricity generationalready online or under contract, using sustainable South Carolina resourcesincluding landfill gas, biogas, solar energy and wind energy. One MW can powerabout 500 average South Carolina homes.
“GreenEnergy Solutions is providing Santee Cooper with another source of renewableelectricity that is affordable and reliable, helping us continue to grow oursustainable generation in a way that is practical for our customers,” saidLonnie Carter, Santee Cooper president and CEO. “As an added benefit, thisproject will also benefit our state’s farmers by offering them another revenuesource.”
“Every branch of agriculture canbenefit from our biogas system facilities,” said Julian Cothran, GES president.“In addition to turning methane biogas into a revenue-producing product, theGES system will create jobs in support of our processing and generatingfacilities. Finally, this system will help the good-neighbor image of thefarmer by producing byproducts that are odorless, free of pathogens, and 99percent free of all weed seeds.”
Green Energy Solutions Inc. is acorporation dedicated to renewing the vitality of the rural American familyfarm through alternative energy generated on the farm. GES is focused on beinggood environmental stewards of farm waste products and manure management.
About Santee Cooper
Santee Cooper is South Carolina’sstate-owned electric and water utility, and the state’s largest power producer.The ultimate source of electricity for 2 million South Carolinians, SanteeCooper is dedicated to being the state’s leading resource for improving thequality of life for the people of South Carolina. For more information, visitwww.santeecooper.com.
