South Carolina’s solar boom continues as another 100 MW of capacity enters service

Another 98 MW of solar entered service in South Carolina, as Pine Gate Renewables said that its Centerfield Solar project in the northern part of the state reached commercial operation status.

The project will deliver electricity to state-owned utility Santee Cooper under a long-term power purchase agreement.

The project was completed in less than a year, with construction starting last June. The installation consists of more than 246,000 solar panels across 590 acres. Details about the panel manufacturer and mounting hardware were not available.

Centerfield Solar marks Pine Gate’s 18th operational project in South Carolina with more than a dozen under construction and in development across the state. Overall, South Carolina has seen a solar boom in the last several years, with most of the state’s operational solar capacity coming online since 2019.

This growth is expected to slow, however, as the Solar Energy Industries association predicts that the state will add 1,344 MW of solar over the next five years, good for just 26th in the nation.

While one of the state’s utilities, Dominion, has committed to shuttering its entire coal fleet and adding as much as 2 GW of solar and up to 900 MW of battery storage, the first project isn’t expected to enter service until 2026, and the additions are set to come in 50-100 MW annual increments over 20 years.

Duke Energy recently expanded its Green Source Advantage program into South Carolina. It remains too early to estimate how much solar will result.