39.5

Risk Grade

Good

Hampton's B grade reflects genuinely low regulatory risk in a rural Lowcountry county; low compliance stringency (CUP is pro forma given minimal opposition), low saturation, stable trajectory; primary constraint is limited electric infrastructure capacity in this rural cooperative territory

Assessment Snapshot

Population

18824

State Rank

Compliance

33%

Trajectory

Moratorium Status

✓ No Active Moratorium

No specific moratorium information available.

Ordinance & Regulations

Setback Requirements

150 ft from residential structures; 50 ft from road ROW; 50 ft from property lines

Zoning Mechanism

CUP via Hampton County Planning Board; County Council approval for >5 MW

Acreage Caps

None established

Spacing Rules

Not specified

Size Restrictions

None formal

Board Sentiment & Political Risk

Sentiment Analysis

Supportive

Basis for Assessment

Rural agricultural county; landowners receptive to solar lease income; county board pro-economic development; Dominion Energy SC and Palmetto Electric both receptive to PPA arrangements; timber economy culture normalizes large-parcel industrial use

Political Risk Factors

Stable

Board Members

County Council Chair Doris Lockhart | D | Term 2024–2028 Council Member Joseph Moss | D | Term 2022–2026 Council Member Fred Robinson | R | Term 2024–2028

Grid, Utilities & State Context

Grid Operator

SERC-SE; Dominion Energy South Carolina; Palmetto Electric Cooperative

Utilities

Palmetto Electric Cooperative, Dominion Energy South Carolina (portions)

State Permitting Process

County zoning authority; no state solar preemption; special exception or conditional use permit typically required for utility-scale (>1 MW); decommissioning bond increasingly required

State Incentives

Federal ITC eligible; SC state income tax credit for solar (25% up to $35,000 for commercial); SC Energy Freedom Act net metering provisions

Development Activity

Active/Completed Projects

Hampton Solar (~20 MW, 2022, Dominion Energy SC PPA)

Denied/Withdrawn Projects

None on record

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Hampton County County, SC — Solar Development Risk Assessment