Santee Cooper has approximately 130,000 retail customers. Carter said a Santee Cooper survey indicates 35 percent of the utility's residential customers and 58 percent of its commercial indicated an interest in purchasing green power. The generators are projected to produce enough electricity to provide Green Power to approximately 9,300 residential customers. Using methane gas as fuel to generate electricity has a tremendous environmental benefit. Greenhouse gases, such as methane, are suspected of contributing to global warming, a disputed yet prevalent theory in the scientific community.
Carbon dioxide is a commonly cited greenhouse gas.
But while methane gas is produced in smaller quantities, NASA research states methane is 21 times more potent than carbon dioxide as a greenhouse gas. The generating facility will be dedicated Oct. 25 with Gov. Jim Hodges scheduled to give the keynote address.