Blythewood Online 691

Tag: NextEra

  • Gas power plant welcome in Fairfield

    FAIRFIELD COUNTY – The new natural gas-fired power plant proposed for Fairfield County would be a welcome investment, said County Administrator Jason Taylor.

    “We would love to see them build a gas-fired power plant in Fairfield County,” he said. “We will negotiate an incentive package and those kinds of things to encourage them to go ahead and do that.”

    The plant, slated to come online at the end of 2023, is part of plans by NextEra Energy if the Florida-based energy company buys Santee Cooper, according to a report NextEra filed with its bid to purchase the South Carolina utility.

    “We view South Carolina as also confirmed that the plan is to build the new plant in Fairfield.

    According to the NextEra report, “The total capital investment will be approximately $1.3 billion, which includes equipment, construction, land, pipeline and transmission system integration costs.”

    “[NextEra has] already made significant progress in the initial phases of project development, including developing plans for plant siting, transmission interconnection, pipeline interconnection, fuel supply, and property tax agreements,” according to the report.

    “The gas for the new plant will come from the Transco pipeline via a newly constructed pipeline lateral.”

    Santee Cooper, partner with fellow South Carolina utility SCE&G in the failed project to build two new nuclear reactors at V.C. Summer, is deeply in debt and targeted for reform. Three options under consideration are reform implemented within the state agency; management by Virginia-based Dominion Energy, which bought SCE&G’s parent company, SCANA; or purchase by NextEra.

    Among the items included in NextEra’s proposal are payoff of Santee Cooper’s $7.9 billion debt, an effective reduction of electric rates, $941 million in customer refunds; and payment of an estimated $3.3 billion in taxes over 30 years. It also includes a $2.3 billion investment in new generation over the next five years, including 1,250 megawatts of gas-fired generation.

    The natural gas combined cycle plant planned for in Fairfield County is expected to create up to 30 permanent jobs and hundreds of construction jobs, and of course add to the county’s tax base, according to NextEra.

    The company’s plan also includes 800 megawatts of solar generation and 50 megawatts of battery storage, with potential sites in South Carolina but not Fairfield, and the retirement of an aging coal-fired power plant elsewhere in the state.

    State legislators, meanwhile, are discussing the issue of the company’s tax status in the event that it buys Santee Cooper – and whether it would receive tax advantages normally afforded to state-owned utilities.

    Taylor said that while the proposed gas-fired power plant would not come close to filling the hole in anticipated tax revenue left by the abandonment of the nuclear project, the project would nonetheless be a help to the county.

    “We welcome it,” he said. “We are anxious for them to invest – as we are with most companies – and we think this would be a good investment in Fairfield County.”

  • Bill would nix NextEra paying Fairfield County taxes

    30-Year Tax Abatement Would Keep Millions From County

    COLUMBIA – Fairfield County officials say they were alarmed by a story in The State newspaper Monday announcing that the proposed sale of state-owned utility Santee Cooper to Florida energy giant NextEra could deprive many South Carolina counties and their schools, including Fairfield, of billions in tax dollars over the next 30 years.

    Santee Cooper is a publicly owned utility and, therefore, does not pay property taxes. Should the for-profit utility NextEra purchase Santee Cooper, which is likely, then Santee Cooper would convert to a for-profit business and would, under normal circumstances, be required to pay taxes. But a bill proposed by some state lawmakers would exempt the utility from paying local property taxes to South Carolina counties and schools for a period of 30 years.

    For counties and schools throughout the state, according to the proposed bill, that would amount to NextEra not paying as much as $200 million a year, or $6 billion over 30 years.  For Fairfield County it would mean missing out on millions annually according to Fairfield County Administrator Jason Taylor.

     “We were expecting an additional $15 million or so annually if the sale goes through,” Taylor said. “But if the proposed bill becomes law and NextEra ends up paying the same tax rate Santee Cooper paid, that would be nothing, zero dollars for the county. And not just the county, but our schools would also lose out tremendously.”

    I can understand some kind of incentive associated with Next Era’s purchase of Santee Cooper, some kind of fee-in-lieu structure, but not a 30-year tax holiday.

    Jason Taylor, Fairfield County Administrator

    One former county official put it like this: while Fairfield County citizens bear all of the risk of having a nuclear and gas plant within its borders, which NextEra would partially own should the sale go through, the county would get no additional property tax benefits (if the proposed bill becomes law) to fund things like local schools, EMS, fire services, law enforcement and other vital services, while NextEra chases profits.

    The county has reportedly been negotiating for months with NextEra on an incentive package for a gas fired plant that could potentially bring millions to the county if the sale is finalized. But those negotiations were predicated on NextEra purchasing Santee Cooper, thus converting Santee Cooper to a private for-profit business that would pay taxes. If the proposed bill becomes law, those taxes will not materialize for Fairfield County for 30 years.

    Taylor said he’s read the proposed bill, but is not fully informed yet about where it stands or how likely it is to be passed.

    “But we have a message and we want to be sure our message is fully shared with the state legislators,” he said. “We would possibly pass a resolution expressing our feelings on this, but we first want to consult with our local legislative delegation and, of course, with our county association who helps us with lobbying.”

    Taylor said the county still favors the sale.

    “We feel the sale of Santee Cooper to NextEra will definitely benefit Fairfield County with that billion dollar gas fired plant they’re proposing to build,” Taylor said. “But we’ve been negotiating under the assumption that if and when NextEra buys Santee Cooper, the existing nuclear reactor would bring 45 percent of the additional tax revenue to the county.

    “The county currently receives $32 million annually from V.C. Summer’s operations,” Taylor said. “If the sale goes through and the bill does not, that could bring another $15 million in tax revenue to us. I can understand some kind of incentive associated with NextEra’s purchase of Santee Cooper, some kind of fee-in-lieu structure, but not a 30-year tax holiday. Hopefully, the state will counter the bill.”