Copyright Charleston Post and Courier
Santee Cooper is preparing to go nuclear again. The state-owned utility dropped a strong hint Oct. 21 that it’s close to finalizing its search for deep-pocketed investors willing to take over the two unfinished reactors at the V.C. Summer power plant. A decision is could come by the end of the week, based on comments made Tuesday Peter McCoy, board chairman, got the ball rolling following a nearly two-hour closed-door meeting to discuss “negotiations incident to proposed contractual arrangements related” to the reactors, according to the agenda. “I‘m very proud of this utility, I’m very proud of this group, I’m very proud of the steps we have we have taken and the process we have gone through in order to get to where we are today,” the Charleston lawyer and former state lawmaker said. McCoy also extended his thanks to everyone at Santee Cooper for the extra work they’ve put in “while we’re dealing with a serious project and with something potentially serious on the horizon for our nation, for our state and for our utility.” CEO Jimmy Staton said details will likely emerge on Oct. 24, when the board heads to Myrtle Beach for its next meeting. “It’s going to be a great conclusion for all of us. … We have lot on our plate, and I think it’s going to be a great day for South Carolina on Friday,” Staton said. Santee Cooper was a co-investor in the V.C. Summer project in Fairfield County with the former South Carolina Electric & Gas Co., now part of Dominion Energy — in a deal that promised to deliver a decades of carbon-free power for the Palmetto State. The utilities walked away from the disastrous investment in July 2017, after years of blown construction deadlines, mismanagement and cost overruns, saddling their ratepayers with nearly $10 billion in debt Santee Cooper took ownership of the partially built units in 2018. The Moncks Corner-based utility announced in January it would soliciting requests for proposals to gauge interest about a possible sale and completion of the reactors to ease the $3 billion in costs that have been passed on to its customers. The first key deadline was May 5, and the early response was "robust," Staton said earlier this year. Santee Cooper sent confidentiality agreements to at least seven would-be bidders, and three proposals were still in the mix as of a few weeks ago, a lawmaker told The Post and Courier. The decision to market what has been billed as South Carolina's biggest-ever business bust is being fueled by a spike in demand for electricity, partly from population growth and from large-scale energy-intensive data centers and other investments tied to the artificial-intelligence craze. Maars landing A Dutch architecture company that's making its first investment into the U.S. market has selected Mount Pleasant as its jumping off point. Maars North America, which builds customizable modular interior commercial wall systems for offices, hospitals and schools, is investing $3 million into the town with the hopes of creating 10 jobs. The Netherlands firm's fabrication plant will be on Interlock Alley near Mount Pleasant Regional Airport, where Maars will look to increase market demand and streamline distribution across the U.S. The East Cooper site will also serve as the company's U.S. showroom. Operations are expected to be online in the second quarter of 2026. “This expansion reflects our long-term commitment to supporting high-growth market segments and delivering excellence on key projects," Ricardo Costa, Maars North America's vice president, said in a written statement. "We are bringing the same standards of manufacturing excellence, process discipline and quality that have defined Maars for over 80 years.” Maars said it's active in more than 50 countries and supplies to a network of worldwide dealers. Liquid asset An international logistics company that cleans, maintains and services large tanks and shipping containers that haul liquids in bulk is looking to make a bigger splash in the Charleston market. Depot Connect International announced last week that it has opened its previously announced 20-acre depot at 428 High Country Drive in Summerville, near Highway 78 and Bell Wright Road, for its third location in the Charleston region. “This opening is … a commitment to Summerville and the greater Charleston region," CEO Chris Synek said in a written statement. "The Port of Charleston is one of the fastest-growing container ports in the nation, and Summerville represents the kind of vibrant, innovative community where DCI wants to invest and grow.” The Tampa-Fla. company said it operates 190 sites in seven countries. It announced the Summerville expansion in early 2024, before it rebranded from Boasso Global to Delta Connection. The company operates six other depots in the Lowcountry and Upstate markets, according to its website The developer of the new Berkeley County location was an affiliate of Georgia-based Capital Development Partners, which bought the property for about $7.2 million in late 2023. Setting the stage A land-lease agreement the owner of the Four Seasons Hotel and Residences site is seeking from the City of Charleston is up for review again. With construction for the project starting by the end of the year, Pinnacle Mountain Holdings needs a staging area for the hotel and mixed-use development. It's proposing to route construction traffic from Market Street to behind the Meeting Street Inn and onto the Four Seasons site near Horlbeck Alley. A committee already has approved the request to lease a city-owned lot next to the project site for $5,600 a month. The terms of the three-year deal include two one-year extension options. The lease still requires final approval from City Council, which will review it for the second time up Oct. 28. Checkout AIsle AI is coming to customers of South Carolina's largest private-sector employer. Walmart is hoping to move customers away from searching for products online to relaying about what they want to buy with ChatGPT, get a product suggestion and then buy it directly through the AI tool's Instant Checkout. The retail giant announced the new partnership with OpenAI last week. The option already is available to Etsy sellers in the U.S. and more than 1 million Shopify merchants Other retailers including Glossier, SKIMS, Spanx and Vuori are expected to offer it soon. “There is a native AI experience coming that is multi-media, personalized and contextual,” Walmart CEO Doug McMillon said. “It learns, plans and predicts, helping customers anticipate their needs before they do.” Across the Palmetto State, Arkansas-based Walmart operates 122 stores and five distribution centers that employ about 37,400 workers.
