AI data center sites in South Carolina

46 South Carolina counties scored on transmission, the interconnection queue, power price and tax. Updated October 18, 2026.

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Open a county for its queue requests, substations, plants and data centers.

CountyScorePipelinePower price
66300 MW7.8¢/kWh
62413 MW7.8¢/kWh
61425 MW7.8¢/kWh
59-7.8¢/kWh
58-7.8¢/kWh
554 MW7.8¢/kWh
55-7.8¢/kWh
55174 MW7.8¢/kWh
55-7.8¢/kWh
52-7.8¢/kWh
52-7.8¢/kWh
5174 MW7.8¢/kWh
50-7.8¢/kWh
50-7.8¢/kWh
50-7.8¢/kWh
49-7.8¢/kWh
4971 MW7.8¢/kWh
47-7.8¢/kWh
46151 MW7.8¢/kWh
46-7.8¢/kWh
45200 MW7.8¢/kWh
45-7.8¢/kWh
4581 MW7.8¢/kWh
45-7.8¢/kWh
45-7.8¢/kWh
45-7.8¢/kWh
4575 MW7.8¢/kWh
44-7.8¢/kWh
4475 MW7.8¢/kWh
44-7.8¢/kWh
4360 MW7.8¢/kWh
43-7.8¢/kWh
42-7.8¢/kWh
4210 MW7.8¢/kWh
42-7.8¢/kWh
41-7.8¢/kWh
41-7.8¢/kWh
40-7.8¢/kWh
39-7.8¢/kWh
3850 MW7.8¢/kWh
36-7.8¢/kWh
34-7.8¢/kWh
33-7.8¢/kWh
3145 MW7.8¢/kWh
29-7.8¢/kWh
29-7.8¢/kWh

Pipeline: active generation and storage requests in the ISO queue, or EIA planned plants where larger (outside the ISOs). Top kV: highest substation voltage. Power price: the state's industrial average. DCs: GPU colocation, mining sites and AI campuses.

What the data shows

The strongest South Carolina counties for a large AI load are Berkeley County (66), Georgetown County (62) and Darlington County (61) on the site score. South Carolina sits in utility territory; EIA lists 2.2 GW of planned generators there, and it has 3 substations at 345 kV and up.

Industrial power averaged 7.8¢/kWh (EIA, July 2026 YTD), against 7.1¢/kWh a year earlier, the 13th lowest of the 50 states and DC. South Carolina has a data center sales and use tax exemption in force. We track 3 AI campuses and 7 GPU-ready colocation facilities here.

Top 6 counties in detail

1. Berkeley CountyUtility: Santee Cooper

Site score 66 of 100

Transmission
18/25
Generation pipeline
4/20
Industrial power price
19/20
Existing and retiring plants
10/15
Sales tax exemption
10/10
Data center activity
5/10
Market
Utility: Santee Cooper
Queue (active)
0 MW
Agreement signed
0 MW
Planned plants (EIA)
300 MW
Top substation
230 kV
Substations 230 kV+
8
Operating plants
3.4 GW
Retired or retiring
54 MW
Industrial power, SC
7.8¢/kWh
Sales tax exemption
Yes

Substations, 115 kV and up

  • JEFFERIES STATION · 15 lines230 kV
  • JEFFERIES STATION · 12 lines230 kV
  • Unnamed · 11 lines230 kV
  • Unnamed · 8 lines230 kV
  • Unnamed · 6 lines230 kV
  • KINGSTREE · 6 lines230 kV
  • Unnamed · 5 lines230 kV
  • Unnamed · 3 lines230 kV

Planned, retiring and retired plants

  • Pinopolis BESS · Storage, planned 2027300 MW
  • Williams · Gas, retired 202254 MW

Data centers, AI campuses and mining sites

  • Google Berkeley County data center campus (Mount Holly Commerce Park) · AI campus, operating · ABC News 4 (WCIV)
  • DartPoints CHS01 · GPU colocation, Ladson, 0.1 MW

Colocation from our GPU colocation list; mining sites from the miner AI conversion tracker.

2. Georgetown CountyUtility: Santee Cooper

Site score 62 of 100

Transmission
12/25
Generation pipeline
7/20
Industrial power price
19/20
Existing and retiring plants
14/15
Sales tax exemption
10/10
Data center activity
0/10
Market
Utility: Santee Cooper
Queue (active)
0 MW
Agreement signed
0 MW
Planned plants (EIA)
413 MW
Top substation
230 kV
Substations 230 kV+
2
Operating plants
1.6 GW
Retired or retiring
1.3 GW
Industrial power, SC
7.8¢/kWh
Sales tax exemption
Yes

Substations, 115 kV and up

  • Unnamed · 8 lines230 kV
  • WINYAH STATION · 8 lines230 kV
  • WINYAH STATION · 10 lines115 kV
  • Unnamed · 5 lines115 kV
  • RISER146671 · 4 lines115 kV
  • RISER146669 · 4 lines115 kV
  • Unnamed · 3 lines115 kV
  • Unnamed · 3 lines115 kV

Planned, retiring and retired plants

  • Winyah · Coal, retiring 20301.3 GW
  • Kingstree East 230 Solar Project · Solar, planned 2029249 MW
  • Winyah · Gas, planned 2027114 MW
  • SR Georgetown · Solar, planned 202650 MW

3. Darlington CountyUtility: Duke Energy Progress East

Site score 61 of 100

Transmission
18/25
Generation pipeline
8/20
Industrial power price
19/20
Existing and retiring plants
7/15
Sales tax exemption
10/10
Data center activity
0/10
Market
Utility: Duke Energy Progress East
Queue (active)
0 MW
Agreement signed
0 MW
Planned plants (EIA)
425 MW
Top substation
230 kV
Substations 230 kV+
5
Operating plants
1.2 GW
Retired or retiring
0 MW
Industrial power, SC
7.8¢/kWh
Sales tax exemption
Yes

Substations, 115 kV and up

  • H B ROBINSON · 9 lines230 kV
  • DARLINGTON COUNTY · 7 lines230 kV
  • Unnamed · 4 lines230 kV
  • Unnamed · 3 lines230 kV
  • Unnamed · 3 lines230 kV
  • Unnamed · 3 lines115 kV
  • Unnamed · 3 lines115 kV
  • Unnamed · 3 lines115 kV

Planned, retiring and retired plants

  • Lotus Solar · Solar, planned 202775 MW
  • B & K Solar · Solar, planned 202675 MW
  • Culpepper Solar · Solar, planned 202775 MW
  • Rollins Solar · Solar, planned 202775 MW
  • Ross Solar · Solar, planned 202775 MW
  • GEB Solar · Solar, planned 202850 MW

4. York CountyUtility: Duke Energy Carolinas

Site score 59 of 100

Transmission
21/25
Generation pipeline
0/20
Industrial power price
19/20
Existing and retiring plants
9/15
Sales tax exemption
10/10
Data center activity
0/10
Market
Utility: Duke Energy Carolinas
Queue (active)
0 MW
Agreement signed
0 MW
Planned plants (EIA)
0 MW
Top substation
500 kV
Substations 230 kV+
3
Operating plants
2.5 GW
Retired or retiring
0 MW
Industrial power, SC
7.8¢/kWh
Sales tax exemption
Yes

Substations, 115 kV and up

  • NEWPORT TIE · 20 lines500 kV
  • CATAWBA 230KV SWITCHING STATION · 15 lines230 kV
  • CATAWBA 230KV SWITCHING STATION · 6 lines230 kV

5. Pickens CountyUtility: Duke Energy Carolinas

Site score 58 of 100

Transmission
23/25
Generation pipeline
0/20
Industrial power price
19/20
Existing and retiring plants
6/15
Sales tax exemption
10/10
Data center activity
0/10
Market
Utility: Duke Energy Carolinas
Queue (active)
0 MW
Agreement signed
0 MW
Planned plants (EIA)
0 MW
Top substation
500 kV
Substations 230 kV+
4
Operating plants
950 MW
Retired or retiring
0 MW
Industrial power, SC
7.8¢/kWh
Sales tax exemption
Yes

Substations, 115 kV and up

  • JOCASSEE SWITCHING STATION · 9 lines500 kV
  • CENTRAL TIE · 24 lines230 kV
  • JOCASSEE SWITCHING STATION · 12 lines230 kV
  • NORTH GREENVILLE TIE · 6 lines230 kV

6. Fairfield CountyUtility: Dominion Energy South Carolina

Site score 55 of 100

Transmission
16/25
Generation pipeline
1/20
Industrial power price
19/20
Existing and retiring plants
10/15
Sales tax exemption
10/10
Data center activity
0/10
Market
Utility: Dominion Energy South Carolina
Queue (active)
0 MW
Agreement signed
0 MW
Planned plants (EIA)
4 MW
Top substation
230 kV
Substations 230 kV+
4
Operating plants
1.8 GW
Retired or retiring
84 MW
Industrial power, SC
7.8¢/kWh
Sales tax exemption
Yes

Substations, 115 kV and up

  • V C SUMMER · 12 lines230 kV
  • V C SUMMER · 12 lines230 kV
  • WINNESBORO · 2 lines230 kV
  • V C SUMMER · 2 lines230 kV
  • PARR GT · 7 lines115 kV
  • Unnamed · 3 lines115 kV
  • Unnamed · 3 lines115 kV

Planned, retiring and retired plants

  • Parr GT · Gas, retired 202384 MW

Data center tax exemption in South Carolina

South Carolina datacenter sales and use tax exemption (S.C. Code 12-36-2120(79))

Computer equipment, hardware and software used in a datacenter certified by the SC Department of Commerce, plus electricity and on-site electrical infrastructure used by the datacenter, are exempt where a taxpayer invests at least $50 million (or several taxpayers at least $75 million in aggregate) over five years and creates and keeps at least 25 full-time jobs paying 150% of state or county per capita income; certification must occur before January 1, 2032, with the exemption continuing ten more years for facilities certified by then. Separate items (65) and (66) cover larger technology-intensive facilities ($300 million, 100 jobs).

Recent change: In April 2026 the Senate rejected a one-year suspension of the data center exemptions; its budget carried provisos to study them and (per the SC Policy Council) one temporarily suspending economic development incentives. We have not confirmed which provisos survived the final FY2026-27 budget; the exemption remains in statute.

Source: South Carolina General Assembly, accessed 2026-10-17. General information, not tax advice; ask your tax advisor.

AI data centers being built in South Carolina

CampusDeveloperCountyMWStatusSource
Google Berkeley County data center campus (Mount Holly Commerce Park)GoogleBerkeley County-operatingABC News 4 (WCIV)Oct 13, 2025
Google Dorchester County data center campuses (Ridgeville and St. George)GoogleDorchester County-under constructionGoogleOct 2026
Meta Aiken County data center (Sage Mill Industrial Park)MetaAiken County-under constructionMetaOct 2026

How the score works

Six parts out of 100: transmission (25), generation in the queue (20), the state's industrial power price (20), existing and retiring plants (15), sales tax exemption (10) and data center activity (10). The site finder's methodology prints each formula and every source with its date. Markets: Utility territory (no ISO/RTO).

All states

Discuss a transaction

Funding a data center or the GPUs going into one in South Carolina? Tell us about the site and the capital you need, and we will come back with the lenders and the structure that fit. Operators raising debt for a cluster can start at gpulenders.com.

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