Electric Co-op Today

Electric cooperatives in South Carolina will be reaping the benefits from new sources of renewable energy that could ultimately help improve both air and water quality across the Palmetto State.

Poultry litter and other agricultural waste could add up to 25 megawatts of electricity to South Carolina’s renewable energy resources within six years. (Photo By: Clemson University)

Santee Cooper, the co-ops’ largest power provider, has signed an agreement with a company that’s committed to working with farmers who want to turn their agricultural waste into clean energy.

“The 25 megawatts authorized by the board will come from as many as 50 projects,” said Mollie Gore, Santee Cooper’s public relations director. “Many of these farms, if not all of them, are going to be in areas served by electric cooperatives.”

While poultry farmers will be the firm’s initial focus, relatively small livestock operations could also be involved, said Julian Cothran, president and chief engineering officer of Alabama-based Green Energy Solutions. “Poultry farms, swine, dairy, any type of farm with confined animals could be suited for this.”

Contracts with the farmers are expected to last 20 years or more. The company will lease a small amount of land on each farm for an anaerobic digester and other equipment. The 54-foot long tank used to ferment animal waste and other litter is just a little larger than a school bus. A nearby 540-kilowatt generator, fueled from the produced methane gas, will move a constant stream of renewable energy to the grid.

A biogas plant and 540-kilowatt generator set was preassembled for testing in preparation for installation on a poultry farm in Darlington, County, S.C. (Photo By: Green Energy Solutions)

“The farmer will get a share of the cash from the sale of the electricity,” Cothran said, adding that the farmer will also keep the liquid fertilizer produced. “Byproducts are odorless, free from pathogens, and 99 percent free of all weed seeds.”

Officials at Santee Cooper are looking forward to adding the new renewable energy capacity to its portfolio of landfill gas, biogas, solar and wind energy.

South Carolina’s co-ops and other utilities now have 200 megawatts of renewable energy capacity under contract or online, said Lonnie Carter, president and CEO of the state-owned utility. “This project will also benefit our state’s farmers by offering them another revenue source.”

The co-ops and Santee Cooper have been partners in selling renewable energy to consumers since 2001. They were the first utilities in the state to do so.

“South Carolina’s electric cooperatives support all cost-effective measures for producing electricity cleanly and reliably,” said Mike Couick, president and CEO of the Electric Cooperatives of South Carolina, Inc. “We’re pleased to be partners with Santee Cooper.”

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Tags: Consumer Outreach, Local Initiatives, Renewable Energy