SCCEBA member unveils South Carolina’s largest solar powered flea market

Last week, Charleston, S.C. based Southern Current, in partnership with Coastal Carolina Flea Market and SCE&G, held an unveiling of the largest privately owned, self-financed solar-power installation on the SCE&G power grid in South Carolina.

The unveiling of the solar powered flea market happened on September 22, 2016 in Ladson, South Carolina. The 228.47 kilowatt commercial solar project took roughly six months to complete.  The solar electricity generated from the 737 roof-mounted solar panels and 18 inverters will offset 82 percent of the market’s current electrical costs.

“The Coastal Carolina Flea Market project was very inspiring for me,” said Greg White, chief construction officer of Southern Current. “To have a local customer recognize the value of solar energy, and get the opportunity to partner with SCE&G on the project helped demonstrate what is possible for residents and businesses across South Carolina.”

Dan Davis, president of Coastal Carolina Properties, the company that owns and operates the Coastal Carolina Flea Market, was intent on owning the panels himself, instead of leasing. Although the investment had a steep up-front cost, Southern Current expects the system to generate $45,000 annually for Mr. Davis.

“First and foremost, this was a smart business decision for me, I’m saving money while reducing my carbon footprint,” said Davis.  “I wanted to own the panels so I could receive all of the benefits of ownership. This month, I saw a 34 percent savings on my bill and the panels had only been installed and operating for half of the billing cycle.”

The installation was completed by the professionally licensed staff of Southern Current as well as help from South Carolina Energy and Gas.

“This project is very unique,” said Daniel Kassis, vice president of renewables at SCE&G. “To date, this is going to be the largest privately-owned, self-financed solar installation on our grid that utilizes the SCE&G bill credit incentive.”

“It is this type of partnership and collaboration that SCCEBA hopes will serve as a positive example to other businesses considering clean energy investments,” said Patricia Pierce, Executive Director of the South Carolina Clean Energy Business Alliance.  “The Coastal Carolina Flea Market project demonstrates that solar investments can improve a company’s bottom line while also helping meet overall sustainability goals.”

SCCEBA

SCCEBA is a 501(c) (3) non-profit organization that has been tasked with building a broad-based business alliance that fosters the development of a clean energy industry in S.C. SCCEBA is a cooperative enterprise for clean energy supply chain development in S.C. For more information, visit scceba.org.