MONCKS CORNER, S.C. — South Carolina’s largest power provider is proposing new rate increases over the next two years, with officials at Santee Cooper saying the changes are needed to maintain reliability and fund critical infrastructure upgrades.
The utility’s Board of Directors on Friday received a proposal outlining base rate adjustments for 2027 and 2028 and approved a public comment process that will allow customers to weigh in over the coming months.
Under the proposal, Santee Cooper would implement an average rate increase of 3.3% across retail customer classes in 2027, followed by another 3.1% increase in 2028. The plan follows a comprehensive review of projected costs conducted by utility management and third-party consultants.
Officials say the increases are intended to offset rising operating expenses and support investments in new and upgraded generation and transmission systems.
“These proposed changes are necessary to allow Santee Cooper to continue delivering the reliable, sustainable electricity that our customers expect,” said President and CEO Jimmy Staton. “We understand customers are concerned about rising prices generally, and we will keep our costs as low as possible while also guaranteeing system dependability for the future.”
The proposal breaks down differently across customer groups. Residential customers would see an average increase of 4.7% in 2027 and 4.6% in 2028, while commercial customers would see increases of 2.9% in both years. Industrial and lighting customers would also see smaller adjustments.
In addition to rate increases, the proposal includes changes to how some customers are billed, shaped in part by feedback gathered during customer focus groups earlier this year.
One of the most significant changes is a shift to what Santee Cooper calls “Balanced Demand Billing.” Instead of calculating demand charges based on a single hour of peak electricity use, the new approach would average the highest one-hour usage across the four peak periods in a month. The utility says the change is designed to reduce the financial impact of short-term spikes in energy use.
For commercial customers, the peak demand window would also be shortened from four hours to three, aligning more closely with residential peak periods and potentially offering more flexibility to manage costs.
“We listened to our customers and made meaningful changes based on their experiences and feedback,” Staton said. “Our customers wanted to have more control over their results, and we are helping them do this with Balanced Demand Billing.”
Customers have until Aug. 31 to review the proposal and submit feedback. Public meetings are scheduled for late July and August, and written comments will be accepted through July 30.
The utility’s management is expected to present final rate recommendations on Sept. 29, with a board vote scheduled for Oct. 30. If approved, the new rates would take effect on Feb. 1, 2027, and Feb. 1, 2028.
Santee Cooper, which has served South Carolina for more than 90 years, provides electricity to roughly 2 million people across the state.
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