Santee Cooper takes comments on rate increases – Coastal Observer

Santee Cooper takes comments on rate increases – Coastal Observer

A meeting next week at the Waccamaw Library will give utility customers an opportunity to comment on Santee Cooper’s proposal to raise rates over the next two years. The board of the state-owned utility is proposing a 4.8 percent average increase in residential rates starting in February and a 4.6 percent increase in 2028. Smaller average increases are proposed for commercial and industrial users. “These proposed changes are necessary to allow Santee Cooper to continue delivering the reliable, sustainable electricity that our customers expect,” said Jimmy Staton, the president and CEO, in a statement when the changes were announced this spring. “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 utility is also proposing a change in the way it calculates demand charges that were implemented in 2025. Demand is the total amount of electricity a customer uses at one time, and it increases when several major appliances are operating at once. Instead of billing demand on a single highest-hour usage, a new “balanced demand billing” would assess demand based on an average of the highest one-hour usage in each of the four highest peak periods that month.  The commercial peak demand window will be shortened from four hours to three, and aligned with residential hours – 3 to 6 p.m. in the summer and 6 to 9 a.m. in the winter. The rate study is available at santeecooper.com. Next week’s meeting is scheduled for July 10:30 a.m. Tuesday in the library auditorium. The utility will take written comments through July 30 and its board will take comments at an Aug. 31 meeting in Myrtle Beach. The board is due to vote on the new rates Oct. 31.