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Williamsburg County County, SC — Solar Development Risk Assessment

Local solar ordinance barriers, board sentiment, and utility policies that affect development timelines and risk.

33.5
Risk Grade
Excellent
Williamsburg earns B grade as one of SC's more favorable solar counties — genuinely low regulatory barriers, flat Coastal Plain terrain, abundant acreage, pro-development council, and established Santee Cooper/Berkeley Electric interconnection pathway; primary constraint is modest transmission capacity in this rural Santee Cooper service territory
Assessment Snapshot
Population
28961
State Rank
#3
Compliance
32%
Trajectory
30

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 Williamsburg County Planning Board; County Council approval for >5 MW; Santee Cooper grid coordination for interconnection
Acreage Caps
None established
Spacing Rules
Not specified
Size Restrictions
None formal

Board Sentiment & Political Risk

Sentiment Analysis
Supportive
Basis for Assessment
Very rural Santee Cooper territory with strong economic rationale; county council actively promotes solar; Berkeley Electric Cooperative experienced with utility-scale solar interconnection; 597,760-acre county with very low density and flat farmland offers abundant capacity; two operating projects confirm accessible pathway; declining population creates pro-development urgency
Political Risk Factors
Stable
Board Members
County Council Chair Billy Anderson | D | Term 2024–2028 Council Member Marion Smalls | D | Term 2022–2026 Council Member Johnnie Hemingway | D | Term 2024–2028 Council Member Kenneth Ard | R | Term 2022–2026

Grid, Utilities & State Context

Grid Operator
SERC-SE; Santee Cooper
Utilities
Santee Cooper / Berkeley Electric Cooperative, Williamsburg Electric Cooperative (Santee Cooper member)
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
Kingstree Solar (~45 MW, 2021, Santee Cooper/Berkeley Electric PPA); Williamsburg Solar (~35 MW, 2023)
Denied/Withdrawn Projects
None on record

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Last verified: 2026-04-02 | SolarRisk Tracker | Data sources: Government records, utility filings, public meeting minutes