CEO retiring after failed nuclear project winds up costing customers $10 billion
COLUMBIA, S.C. — The CEO of South Carolina’s state-owned utility is retiring, making him the first executive to leave following last month’s abandonment of a nuclear power project that customers have been funding since 2009.
Lonnie Carter, CEO of Santee Cooper since 2004, announced his resignation Friday after 35 years with the public utility.
Carter pledges to participate in legislative hearings into why the public utility and privately owned South Carolina Electric & Gas decided July 31 to bail on the expansion of V.C. Summer Nuclear Station after spending $10 billion.
Carter’s salary is $541,000. His $330,500 bonus last year was tied to corporate goals such as power costs, safety and customer satisfaction, according to the utility. A spokeswoman could not immediately provide Carter’s retirement package.
The nuclear project’s abrupt end left about 6,000 people jobless and brought a backlash from lawmakers and customers, who have spent about $2 billion on the project through a series of rate hikes. More than half a billion of that came from Santee Cooper customers.
Legislative panels created to investigate the debacle started meeting Tuesday.
Carter and executives for SCANA, SCE&G’s parent company, have repeatedly blamed lead contractor Westinghouse for its failure.
Westinghouse declared bankruptcy in March, voiding fixed-price contracts negotiated in 2015 to control escalating costs. Utility executives contend they were forced to give up after a post-bankruptcy analysis determined the price tag for completing the project — last approved by state regulators at $14 billion — had soared beyond $20 billion.
Santee Cooper would have had to increase customers’ rates by more than 40 percent, Carter said.
Also on Friday, Duke Energy announced it would not build a proposed nuclear plant in Charlotte.
That utility has spent more than $540 million on land, permitting and plans.