South Carolina Utility Seeks Proposals to Continue Abandoned V.C. Summer Nuclear Project

South Carolina’s state-owned utility, Santee Cooper, issued a request for proposals for potential buyers to acquire and complete the development of two partially constructed nuclear reactors at the V.C. Summer Nuclear Station, according to a Jan. 22 press release. The move comes in response to growing interest in new nuclear power to help meet rising electricity demand driven by data center expansion.

The utility is working with investment banking firm Centerview Partners to solicit bids until May 5, 2025, from parties wanting to acquire the nuclear project located in Fairfield County, South Carolina.

Santee Cooper halted the construction of the two nuclear reactors in July 2017, citing time and cost constraints. Dominion Energy, the operator of the nuclear plant and majority owner of the project abandoned the $9 billion nuclear expansion and transferred the assets to Santee Cooper in 2018.

The V.C. Summer Nuclear Station has the potential to generate 2,200 megawatts (MW) of nuclear power on an accelerated timeline, according to Santee Cooper’s press release. The site’s location also gives the plant access to abundant land and water resources, as well as faster upgrades of transmission infrastructure to distribute power output.

Several factors have renewed the utility’s interest in continuing the expansion of the V.C. Summer nuclear plant, including the need for new generating capacity in response to the rapid growth in data centers. As energy-intensive data centers expand across the country, major technology companies are turning to nuclear projects to meet the increasing demand for emissions-free power. In the last year, tech giants including Amazon, Google, and Microsoft have signed major agreements with energy companies to supply nuclear power for their data centers.

The U.S. government and energy companies have also taken significant steps to recommission or repower nuclear projects that were previously abandoned. In October 2024, the U.S. Energy Department finalized a $2.8 billion loan guarantee to Holtec Palisades to restart the 800 MW Palisades Nuclear Plant in Michigan, making it the first decommissioned nuclear plant in the U.S. to be restarted.