Investing.com -- Santee Cooper has initiated a process to seek proposals for the acquisition and completion of two partially constructed generating units at the V.C. Summer Nuclear Station in Jenkinsville, S.C., in response to the increasing national interest in new nuclear power for meeting the growing demand for electricity.
Centerview Partners LLC has been hired by Santee Cooper to conduct a Request for Proposal (RFP). The RFP aims to find parties interested in acquiring the project and related assets, possibly completing one or both units, or exploring alternative uses of the assets. The deadline for responses to Centerview is May 5, 2025.
Santee Cooper's President and CEO, Jimmy Staton, commented on the renewed interest in nuclear energy, driven by advanced manufacturing investments, AI-driven data center demand, and the tech industry's zero-carbon targets. He noted the unique opportunity that Santee Cooper has to explore options for the Summer Units 2 and 3 and their related assets. These options could allow someone to generate reliable, carbon emissions-free electricity on a significantly shortened timeline.
Staton further stated that while Santee Cooper does not plan to own or operate these units, the RFP process could help identify another entity with a viable alternative that would benefit their customers, support economic development, and provide value to the state of South Carolina.
The decision to launch the RFP process was influenced by several factors including the need for new generating capacity due to rapid growth in data centers, the continued onshoring of advanced manufacturing, the retirement of fossil units, and significant national interest in repowering previously closed or canceled nuclear projects to shorten project timelines.
The V.C. Summer project is uniquely positioned as the only site in the U.S. that could deliver 2,200 MWs of nuclear capacity on an accelerated timeline. The project uses the AP1000 technology, the same used by Southern Company (NYSE:SO) for Plant Vogtle Units 3 and 4, which entered service in 2023 and 2024. The project is located within the nuclear security "envelope" of the larger V.C. Summer station site and has access to ample land, water, and transmission infrastructure upgrades built to accommodate output from the units.
Santee Cooper decided to halt the construction of Units 2 and 3 in July 2017 following years of extensive and costly delays and then bankruptcy by its contractor. The project was abandoned by SCE&G (now Dominion Energy (NYSE:D) South Carolina), the majority owner, who transferred its interest in the assets to Santee Cooper in 2018.
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