Pros and Cons of Renewable and Conventional Electricity Generation in the Red State of S.C., Part 2

The S.C. Legislature had two choices: 1. Keep Electricity prices reasonable to keep low electricity costs for citizens plus, attract more industry or 2. Transition to Solar, Wind, Batteries, Natural Gas and create significantly higher electric bills. They chose option 2. just as most U.S. Blue states did…

The experiences of most countries and U.S. states that have “transitioned” to renewable energy has caused electricity prices to sharply rise and caused de-industrialization. Yet, the U.S. policymakers continue the War on Coal” by implementing harmful Net-Zero Carbon policies. The Green New Deal/Inflation Reduction Act policy momentum continues into 2026. Investments in new electricity generation for fiscal year 2026, according to the EIA is still over 90% renewables. That’s right, not one Dispatchable or Base Load coal or nuclear plant is planned for construction in 2026, according to the EIA as of January 2026.

South Carolina although believed to be a very Conservative state, the energy policy is just as Blue as California or Massachusetts. The South Carolina law (S.C. Code Ann. §58-37-40) directs the retirement of coal-fired generation:

S.C. General Assembly — H.3194 (Session 124, 2021–2022)

Part 1 of this article covered Winter Storm Fern and the importance of coal to provide over 80% of the low country’s electricity production.

Let’s move forward to future planning for increasing generation to meet the growing Demand. Here below is the narrowly focused basis of low CO2 generation planning by Santee-Cooper (aka South Carolina Public Service Authority) updated IRP. As you can see, the primary driver of the type of new generation capacity is CO2 Emissions. Not Grid reliability, affordability, Dispatchability or industrial economics. This is in opposition to the Trump energy agenda and policy to exit the anti-American Paris Agreement and to repeal the CO2 Endangerment Finding and keep America strong. President Trump has done his part, our state, like many blue states and Deep State Bureaucrats, is continuing to trod down the destructive regulatory path of Net-Zero Carbon.

My Letter to S.C. Senator Davis, April 2025

I wrote to S.C. Senator Davis as a response to his Press Release asking for public comments. Here are some excerpts from my letter to Senator Davis:

This letter was written last year, well before the Iranian conflict began. Gas prices are likely to become more volatile and mostly higher when summer electricity Demand begins and of course, a lot higher next December.

Included in the letter to Senator Davis was a couple charts, including this one of the renewable premium paid in electricity costs in various countries of the world.

I have written an article on my blog which outlines the good results of coal plants (such as Santee-Cooper’s excellent record of 80 years) and the references to other states and countries that have abandoned coal fuel. The blog post is here.

As of this writing, the S.C. Legislature has not budged from the the Net Zero path to increased electricity costs and less reliability.

Conclusion: S.C. is Planning for Electricity Price Rises and Less Grid Reliability

The previous blog posts showed many details of Palmetto Electric’s Bulk Power Supply, from Santee-Cooper. Here, here, here, here and here.

By planning for Net Zero Carbon, South Carolina is planning for higher electricity costs in lieu of building new coal plants to preserve our position as one of the states with the most Industry and consumer friendly low electric rates.

Additional references are listed below to show the clear rise in electric rates as more dependence on variable generation and battery storage. Another consideration is resistance to fuel interruptions during times of war, such as we have now. Coal power generation has the inherent advantage of storing weeks or months of primary energy in a coal pile on site.

Yours truly,

Dick Storm, March 17, 2026

References and information for further reading and research

  1. Santee-Cooper 2025 IRP Update  https://www.santeecooper.com/About/Integrated-Resource-Plan/presentations/Santee-Cooper-2025-IRP-Update.pdf
  2. Blue States are Like Watermellons, with electricity policy: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/blue-states-are-like-watermelons?utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email
  3. Mitch Rolling and Isaac Orr article on Obama caused escalating electricity prices: https://open.substack.com/pub/energybadboys/p/necessarily-skyrocket?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web
  4. Example of Solar Panel Robustness during severe weather event in Indiana. March 2026: NIPSCO Solar Farm Destruction from Tornado, March 2026: https://open.substack.com/pub/energybadboys/p/solar-scattered-coal-still-standing?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web
  5. CO2 Coalition — Striking Down the Endangerment Finding  https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/striking-down-the-endangerment-finding
  6. VJ Jayaraj (CO2 Coalition), Sept. 2025  https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/every-new-airport-every-new-highway
  7. S.C. Grid Info  https://www.gridinfo.com/south-carolina
  8. Winter Storm Fern Energy Review (Kilovar)  https://open.substack.com/pub/kilovar1959/p/fuel-the-january-26-winter-storms
  9. Isaac Orr and Mitch Rolling on Blue States, High Rates: https://energybadboys.substack.com/p/blue-states-high-rates
  10. Staggering Cost of New England Electricity  https://yankeeinstitute.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/ISO-NE-r3b.pdf
  11. Big Beautiful Bill Must Stop Subsidizing Green Power  https://www.realclearenergy.org/articles/2025/05/28/the_big_beautiful_bill_must_stop_subsidizing_unreliable_power_grids_1112902.html
  12. Renewables Blueprint (American Experiment)  https://files.americanexperiment.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/Renewable-Energy.pdf
  13. Electricity Prices by State (Electric Choice)  https://www.electricchoice.com/electricity-prices-by-state/
  14. President’s Executive Order on the Energy Emergency: https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/01/declaring-a-national-energy-emergency/
  15. Electric Rates by State (This Old House)  https://www.thisoldhouse.com/electricity/electricity-rates-by-state
  16. Alex Epstein — China Solar Panels and Coal Power  https://alexepstein.substack.com/p/talking-points-roundup-us-nuclears
  17. Dick Storm LI Post on SC Energy policies and failed coal and nuclear plant plans: https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7184184178920312833?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop
  18. How Can a 6,000 MW Utility in 2030 Become a 9,000 MW Utility in 2050 and Still Meet Net Zero Carbon? Update of last year’s article, May 2, 2024: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2024/05/02/how-can-a-6000-mw-regional-utility-in-2030-which-likely-will-be-a-9000-mw-utility-in-2050-achieve-net-zero-carbon-an-update-on-my-electricity-provider-in-south-carolina/
  19. Coal’s Final Battle, May 18, 2024: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2024/05/20/coals-final-battle/
  20. Tom Shepstone’s Substack repost of Dick Storm commentary, May 20, 2024: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/why-we-the-american-people-must-win?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web
  21. Visualizing 100 Quadrillion BTUs. Shouldn’t Coal Remain in our Energy Mix?” : https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2024/07/02/visualizing-100-quadrillion-btus-of-primary-energy-coal-should-remain-in-our-energy-mix/
  22. The Kingdom of Heaven Runs on Righteousness, The Kingdom of Earth Runs on Energy, Oct. 3, 2024:  https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2024/10/03/heaven-runs-on-righteousness-earth-runs-on-energy/
  23. Why is Western Civilization Self Sabotaging the Primary Energy that Provides 80% of the fuel for America’s Life-Blood of Reliable Electricity, with the War on Carbon?.     : https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2024/12/17/why-is-western-civilization-self-sabotaging-the-primary-energy-sources-that-provide-80-of-the-fuel-for-americas-life-blood-of-reliable-electricity-with-the-war-on-carbon/
  24. Musings on the Self-Sabotaging Energy Policies and a Reminder of the History of the Rise and Fall of Nations:  https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/01/13/musings-on-self-sabotaging-energy-policies-and-a-reminder-of-the-history-of-the-rise-and-fall-of-nations/
  25. The EPA “Endangerment Finding” and why it Needs to Go, Feb. 2, 2025: https://wp.me/p5DzAo-1ZW
  26. The SWAMP MONSTER vs. 300 Million Americans, Feb. 21, 2025: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/02/21/the-swamp-monster-vs-the-best-interests-of-the-united-states-of-america/
  27. Thomas J. Shepstone Substack on Dick Storm’s “Primer on How to Ensure Electricity Security (and How to Destroy It)”:  https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/a-primer-on-how-to-ensure-energy?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false 
  28. Thomas J. Shepstone version of Dick Storm article Feb, 2025. Time to Revoke the Endangerment Finding”  :  https://energysecurityfreedom.substack.com/p/its-way-past-time-to-revoke-the-pseudo
  29.  Existing EPA-Endangerment Rules Impact South Carolina Electricity Costs and Will Cause Rationing if the EPA Endangerment Finding Isn’t Repealed  Feb. 28, 2025: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/02/28/existing-epa-rules-increase-costs-and-will-cause-rationing-of-electricity-in-south-carolina-if-endangerment-finding-is-not-repealed/
  30. David Siegel videos on Climate Change: https://www.cuttingthroughthenoise.net/climate-curious 
  31. The EPA Endangerment Finding Needs to Go! Thomas Shepstone publishing of Dick Storm article, March 9, 2025: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/the-epa-endangerment-finding-needs?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false 
  32. The U.S. Self-Inflicted Electricity Generation Crisis was Created by GONGO the SWAMP Monster, March 19, 2025: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/03/19/the-u-s-self-inflicted-electricity-generation-crisis-was-created-by-gongo-the-swamp-monster-here-is-how-to-end-it/
  33. Coal Power, It is the End Result that Matters!:  https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/03/28/coal-power-it-is-the-end-result-that-counts/
  34. My Letter to Senator Davis on Coal Power in S.C. April 1, 2025: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/04/03/response-to-palmetto-electric-request-to-contact-our-s-c-senators/
  35. The Solution to America’s Electricity Generation Crisis: Build New Coal Plants Now! https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/04/18/the-solution-to-the-nations-coming-electricity-reliability-crisis-build-new-coal-plants/
  36.  Clean Energy Crisis, May 2, 2025     https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/05/02/clean-energy-crisis-2/
  37. Thomas J. Shepstone, edited version of Clean Energy Crisis on Substack, May 3, 2025: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/the-clean-energy-crisis-and-why-it?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email
  38. Repeal the IRA, Protect America’s Life-Blood of Energy and Electricity”:  https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/05/15/repeal-the-ira-protect-americas-lifeblood-of-energy-and-electricity-supply/
  39. Ron Stein and Dick Storm co authored article in America Out Loud, May 19, 2025: https://www.americaoutloud.news/intermittent-electricity-from-renewables-cannot-support-ai-and-data-centers/ https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/05/27/internal-and-external-threats-to-the-u-s-electric-grid/
  40. Conventional Energy Including Coal is the Life-Blood of America:  https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/06/18/conventional-energy-including-coal-is-the-life-blood-of-america/
  41. Thomas J. Shepstone published version of Dick Storm blog post on the “Madness of the Self-Inflicted Electricity Generation Crisis” https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/the-madness-of-the-us-self-inflicted?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email
  42. Energy is the Economy and Electricity is the Life-Blood of western civilization Coal Can Make America’s Electricity Supply Great Again  https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/07/30/energy-is-the-economy-electricity-is-the-life-blood-of-western-civilization-coal-can-make-americas-electricity-supply-great-again/
  43. Thomas J. Shepstone on Substack: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/electricity-is-the-life-blood-of?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
  44. SWAMP People and Organizations Against Making America Great, Foreign and Domestic https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/08/07/swamp-people-and-organizations-against-making-america-great-foreign-domestic/    
  45. Published by Thomas J. Shepstone on Substack: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/fighting-the-swamp-and-our-enemies?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
  46. Some Red States Still Embrace the Green New deal, Including the Usually Conservative State of S.C. Sept. 8, 2025:    https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/09/08/some-red-states-still-embrace-the-green-new-deal-including-usually-conservative-south-carolina/
  47. FIVE REASONS TO BUILD NEW COAL PLANTS NOW! COAL SHOULD BE INCLUDED AS A CRITICAL FUEL TO POWER AMERICA’S FUTURE, SEPT. 24, 2025:  HTTPS://DICKSTORMPROBIZBLOG.ORG/2025/09/24/FIVE-REASONS-TO-BUILD-NEW-COAL-PLANTS-NOW-COAL-SHOULD-BE-INCLUDED-AS-A-CRITICAL-FUEL-TO-POWER-AMERICAS-FUTURE/
  48. Ten Hard Truths of Electricity Generation in South Carolina, the Life-Blood of the Economy, Oct. 8, 2025: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/10/08/ten-hard-truths-of-s-c-electricity-the-lifeblood-of-the-economy/
  49. Reality of Building 32,000 MW of New Generation Capacity/Year. Solutions; Build New Coal Plants Now!,  https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2025/10/22/reality-of-32000-mw-year-of-new-generation-demand-solution-build-new-coal-plants-now/
  50. Power for the U.S.A. Reality of Building 32,000 MW each year: https://powerfortheusa.com/2025/10/22/reality-of-32000-mw-year-of-new-generation-demand-solution-build-new-coal-plants-now/
  51. The Importance of Coal and Thermal Performance Improvements for Heat-Rate and Resiliency: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2026/02/08/the-importance-of-coal-thermal-performance-considerations-for-heat-rate-and-resiliency/
    https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/look-at-the-data-the-demise-of-coal?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web
     
    https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/look-at-the-data-the-demise-of-coal?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web
  52. Pros and Cons of Conventional and Renewables in the Red State of S.C.:     https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2026/03/11/pros-and-cons-of-conventional-and-renewables-electricity-generation-in-the-red-state-of-south-carolina-part-1/
  53.  Jason Hayes republishing of Why Electric rates in SC will Rise: https://open.substack.com/pub/jasonhayes/p/existing-epa-rules-increase-costs?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
  54. Don’t believe the journalists of the MSM, Here are many Scientific Papers that dispute the affects of manmade Climate Change: https://wattsupwiththat.com/2022/01/14/nearly-140-scientific-papers-detail-the-minuscule-effect-co2-has-on-earths-temperature/
  55. Dr. Timothy Ball on the Corruption of Science, 2014: https://www.alachuacounty.us/Depts/epd/EPAC/BOOK%20REVIEW%20-%20‘THE%20DELIBERATE%20CORRUPTION%20OF%20CLIMATE%20SCIENCE%20by%20TIM%20BALL.pdf
  56. CO2 Coalition Website with many Facts and articles: https://co2coalition.org/facts/
  57. Ken Haapala and the Science and Environmental Policy Project:http://sepp.org/twtwfiles/2022/TWTW%209-10-2022.pdf
  58. Professor Richard Lindzen of MIT, Article on his views on Climate Change: https://clintel.org/the-imaginary-climate-crisis-how-can-we-change-the-message-a-talk-by-richard-lindzen/
  59. WUWT Sept. 2021, Summary of William Happer (Happer is Princeton Professor of Physics) and Wijngaarden   : https://wattsupwiththat.com/2021/09/21/the-greenhouse-effect-a-summary-of-wijngaarden-and-happer/
  60. Climate Activism, WUWT March 23, 2022: https://wattsupwiththat.com/2022/03/23/climate-change-is-about-control-stupid-not-the-environment/ 
  61.  POWER Magazine, Sonal Patel, Sept 9, 2022, EPA Rules likely to shut down about 86 GW of coal generation in next few years: https://www.powermag.com/group-epas-coordinated-regulatory-assault-on-coal-power-could-push-retirements-beyond-86-gw-by-2030/?oly_enc_id=3247D5884312C9W
  62. Perhaps some day a Documentary will be made to summarize how Coal was Demonized by NGOs, government, WEF, MSM, Entertainment, Dark Money, and Environmental Extremists just as nuclear power was during the 1970 and 1980’s? Here is “Pandora’s Promise”, 2013 Movie to Expose the Facts about Nuclear Power and how it was wrongly Demonized, causing the collapse of the nuclear Supply-Chain. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KMutoR8YTlQ
  63. NIPSCO Solar Farm Destruction from Tornado, March 2026: https://open.substack.com/pub/energybadboys/p/solar-scattered-coal-still-standing?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web
  64. Mid America Energy, video of building a wind turbine and the enormous quantities of steel and concrete required for each one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=84BeVq2Jm88
  65. Thomas J. Shepstone and Ron Stein on the Trillions wasted on wind and solar generation, March 2026: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/8-trillion-of-investment-into-wind?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web
  66. $8 Trillion in Investment and all we get from Wind, Solar and other renewables and all we get for it is Higher Electric Bills, Thomas J. Shepstone, Jr, Ron Stein, et al: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/8-trillion-of-investment-into-wind?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web
  67. Capital Research Center on Warren Buffett’s Solar and Wind generation: https://capitalresearch.org/article/wind-power-doesnt-make-sense-without-the-tax-credits-part-1/
  68. Bjorn Lomberg: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/bjornlomborg_nytimes-and-many-other-suggest-that-the-more-activity-7350118091680313344-CTSF?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAAAI4KQUBYW-cbQRlA1kgj9X3llGi7u6KNnQ
  69. Bjorn Lomberg on high cost of solar and wind: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/bjornlomborg_the-expensive-green-delusion-despite-green-activity-7331637580842594304-yJtG?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAAAI4KQUBYW-cbQRlA1kgj9X3llGi7u6KNnQ
  70. Substack article by Isaac Orr and Mitch Rolling on Solar with Battery Backup, July 5th, 2025:https://energybadboys.substack.com/p/the-baseload-solar-beatdown
  71. Substack by Orr and Rolling in 2024 on the Myth of Cheap Solar: https://energybadboys.substack.com/p/how-to-destroy-the-myth-of-cheap  
  72. Thomas J. Shepstone on Pennsylvania Solar project failure when tax subsidies were removed, March 2026: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/centre-county-solar-project-goes?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web
  73. EIA List of Electricity Rates by State: https://www.eia.gov/electricity/monthly/epm_table_grapher.php?t=epmt_5_6_a
    https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2024/03/20/hawaii-a-glimpse-into-the-future-of-the-green-new-deal-aka-inflation-reduction-act-here-is-an-update/
  74. Thomas J. Shepstone on Why Do Wind and Solar Need Subsidies if they are so Cheap?: https://open.substack.com/pub/energysecurityfreedom/p/why-are-solar-and-wind-still-government?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
  75. EIA Most of new generation capacity in 2025 from Solar, Aug. 20, 2025: https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=65964&utm_medium=email
  76. WSJ on Wind and Solar subsidies, Aug. 21, 2025: https://www.wsj.com/business/energy-oil/why-solar-and-wind-power-can-thrive-without-subsidies-cee47663
  77. Why are California Electricity Prices So High?, Sub Stack: https://open.substack.com/pub/mestes/p/why-are-californias-electricity-prices?r=kv1a9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
  78. Excellent article by Tilak Doshi, Renewables are Not Cheap, Dec. 2025, WUWT, https://wattsupwiththat.com/2025/12/06/time-to-stop-pretending-renewables-are-cheap/
  79. Energy Bad Boys article on Electricity, Highest Rates in Red and Blue States, Dec. 13, 2025:  https://open.substack.com/pub/energybadboys/p/blue-states-high-rates?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web  
  80. Energy Bad Boys Great Chart of Electricity Prices by States, Dec. 27, 2025: https://open.substack.com/pub/energybadboys/p/visualizing-2026?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web
  81. Failures of the renewables transition era are insults to taxpayers. The worlds’ population depends on insulation, wires, computers, and fertilizers that “renewables” cannot provide.
    Published September 1, 2025, in America Out Loud NEWS
    https://www.americaoutloud.news/failures-of-the-renewables-transition-era-are-insults-to-taxpayers/
  82. Inside Climate News on Maryland Matters of Why Electric Costs are Escalating: https://marylandmatters.org/2025/09/01/why-prices-are-soaring-in-the-countrys-largest-grid-region-explained-in-5-charts/

The Real Problem With American Energy Policy

This post will be short and to the point. Myself and many of my energy experienced friends have watched as absolutely anti-American, anti-Human energy polices have come to be. My friend Tom cut through the BS and wrote the following as a response to the Daily Caller article which documented Chinese involvement in NGOs impacting U.S. Energy Policy. From my very experienced electricity generation engineer, Tom:

This shows the real problem we have in the energy sector:

  • Nuclear power is the safest way to generate safe, clean, environmentally friendly bulk power. But the woman running the cash register at Walmart has been convinced by Jane Fonda and Greenpeace that nuclear power is dangerous and has a huge environmental problem with waste. Neither of these, or all the other fallacies that are widely believed regarding nuclear power are true. How did it ever get this bad?
  •  Clean coal technology has advanced to an amazing level. Go to the top of Mount Washington in Pittsburgh, PA and look out over the clean bright city. Yes, 120 years ago the air was so bad that they needed streetlights during the day. The Monongahela River did indeed catch on fire (so did Lake Erie near Cleveland). But that was then, not now, and there is no way we are going back to using 1800’s technology for coal power plants. Yet, the West Penn Power and Cheswick plants were recently shut down and dismantled. The environmental groups have succeeded in brainwashing most of the non-technical people that climate change is real. They will believe Al Gore and Leonardo DeCaprio rather than the people that actually understand the environmental impact of energy generation. (oh, and they are fighting against building a datacenter on the Cheswick plant sight just because – it’s a lot easier to NIMBY everything than try to find real solutions).
  • The total thermal efficiency cycle for electric cars is far worse than burning a primary fuel in an internal combustion engine. How does this inefficiency impact the environment? (Answer: all the inefficiency is heat dissipated directly to the environment – how in the world does that not contribute to “global warming”?) But the public has become convinced that electric cars are cleaner and the way of the future. Why isn’t the technical community telling the non-technical community this side of the story? (I think we know, government $$$$$, just like wind/solar, the more the government gets to subsidize, the more money available for other nefarious activities. Isn’t this the trap ASME fell into?)
  • We can make nuclear safer, coal cleaner, and cars more efficient until the cows come home. The problem is – these facts don’t matter. The three-headed (now 4 with the new head of the justice system) doesn’t operate on facts. Until we start addressing this problem (Root Cause) we are just spinning our wheels. Maybe we should start with the ASME – when an organization that is supposed to be a premier technically based organization goes woke, how are the average non-technical people out there supposed to know that? If they can’t rely on ASME, then who can they believe? (think Covid, Anthony Fauci, Health & Human Services, the American Medical Association, etc….or even worse – the legal profession).

My thanks to Tom for giving me permission to share these concisely written, truthful and troubling facts.

I have written on the SWAMP Influencers, Federal Regulations and NGOs before. Tom just did it with a great economy of words.

Thank God for President Trump, Chris Wright, Lee Zeldin and a well qualified Cabinet of qualified people to look out for the best interests for America. In closing, let me suggest reading the references listed below if you are curious of who and how the absurd Federal Regulations have come to be.

Yours very truly,

Dick Storm, March 14, 2026

            

References and information that supports my opinion and text written above:

  1. Daily Caller article: https://dailycaller.com/2026/03/13/china-earthjustice-ccp-energy-oil-gas-green-foreign-agents-louisiana/
  2. Pelican Institute for Public Policy: https://cdn01.dailycaller.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/barriers_to_louisiana_energy_dominance_paper.pdf
  3. Capital Research on Power Industry Influencers, 2026: https://capitalresearch.org/?s=NGOs+against+U.S.+Power+Generation
  4. The War on Carbon, How it Came to Be” October 2021: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2021/10/16/the-war-on-carbon-how-it-came-to-be/
  5. Without New Thinking on Nuclear Power, Anti-Carbon Policy Can’t Succeed, Nov. 11, 2021 : https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2021/11/13/without-new-thinking-on-nuclear-power-anti-carbon-climate-policy-cant-succeed/
  6. The Green Energy Crisis is Here, Part 1, Sept. 17, 2023: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2023/05/29/the-green-energy-crisis-is-here-part-1/
  7. The Green Energy Crisis, Part 2, “Meet Some of the People that Caused it”,  June 2023: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2023/06/14/green-energy-crisis-part-2-meet-the-policy-makers-that-caused-it/
  8. Comparison of China and U.S. Energy Policies: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2023/01/18/comparison-of-china-energy-electricity-generation-with-u-s-a/
  9. The Green Energy Crisis, Part 3, June 26, 2023: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2023/06/26/green-energy-crisis-part-3-public-energy-education-is-needed-each-person-in-the-u-s-uses-about-315-million-btus-of-primary-energy-year-this-is-not-practical-or-even-possible-to-replace-with-win/
  10. Wake Up America! Sept. 2023: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2023/09/20/please-wake-up-america-your-energy-and-electricity-generation-reliability-are-at-risk/
  11.  Facing the Hard Truths of Energy, Part 1,  79 Quadrillion BTUs, The Enormity of the Fossil Energy Systems Providing Sustainable Lives, Jan. 11, 2024 : https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2024/01/11/facing-the-hard-truths-of-energy-part-1-79-quadrillion-btusthe-enormity-of-the-fossil-energy-systems-providing-sustainable-lives/
  12.  Influencers of U.S. Energy Policy, January 3, 2023: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2023/01/04/influencers-of-american-energy-policy/
  13. Facing the Hard Truths of Energy, Part 2, The Reality of Replacing Conventional Forms of Energy, Jan. 2024: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2024/02/06/facing-the-hard-truths-of-energy-part-2-some-facts-on-the-reality-of-replacing-conventional-forms-of-energy/
  14.  Facing the Hard Truths of Energy, Part 3, The Transition that Isn’t, from the perspective of Minerals, Feb. 8, 2024: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2024/02/08/facing-the-hard-truths-of-energy-part-3-the-transition-that-isnt-from-the-perspective-of-minerals/
  15. Facing the Hard Truths of Energy, Part 4, The True Agenda for Climate Policies, Feb. 13, 2024: https://dickstormprobizblog.org/2024/02/13/facing-the-hard-truths-of-energy-electricity-generation-and-environmental-protection-part-4-what-is-the-true-agenda-for-climate-policies/
  16. 114th Congress, Majority Staff Report, Obama’s Carbon Mandate, August 2015: http://www.scientificintegrityinstitute.org/USSEWP080415.pdf
  17. Gina McCarthy, Climate Czar, IRS 990 form when she worked at the NRDC Action Fund, between Obama and Biden Administrations, 2020: Click to access nrdc-actionfund-990-2020.pdf
  18. Gina McCarthy Bio on EPA website: https://archive.epa.gov/epa/history/administrator-gina-mccarthy-2013-2017.html 
  19. Competitive Enterprise Institute, “Cooler Heads”, Sept 9, 2022, Excellent reading of more on extremists and their effectiveness in fighting coal and hydrocarbons: https://go.cei.org/webmail/287682/949316776/68e507be334cf34c7d54b4b2a348b50f1d373ec69c94d0d629001f91129chttps://www.wsj.com/articles/the-coming-global-crisis-of-climate-policy-europe-germany-energy-prices-bankruptcy-winter-subsidies-borrowing-green-nuclear-116626510701e7d
  20. Capital Research Center, Influence Watch, Sea Change Foundation, March 2022: https://www.influencewatch.org/non-profit/sea-change-foundation/
  21. Environmental Protection Agency key people by Influence Watch: : https://www.influencewatch.org/government-agency/biden-administration-independent-agencies/#environmental-protection-agency
  22. National Review article on Uranium One Deal, during Obama Administration, 2017: https://www.nationalreview.com/2017/10/uranium-one-deal-obama-administration-doj-hillary-clinton-racketeering/ 
  23. Understanding the Uranium One Scandal, by Canada Free Press, Nov. 2017: https://canadafreepress.com/article/understanding-the-uranium-one-scandal 
  24. Podesta Appointed Biden’s Green Investment Czar, Gatestone Institute, Sept. 2022: https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/18943/john-podesta-green-investment
  25. Podesta paid $35 million by Russian Government for Uranium Deal, Breitbart News, 2019: https://newspunch.com/russian-govt-paid-35-million-john-podesta/
  26. New York Post article on Podesta Involvement with Russians when he was Hillary Clinton’s Campaign Chief, 2017: https://nypost.com/2017/07/05/uncovering-the-russia-ties-of-hillarys-campaign-chief/
  27. McCarthy Resigns from Whitehouse position, Sept. 2022, Fox News: https://www.foxnews.com/politics/white-house-national-climate-adviser-gina-mccarthy-resigns 
  28. Joe Goffman background by Daily Caller News Foundation, Aug. 2022: https://dailycaller.com/2022/08/23/biden-epa-ethics-law-watchdogs-joseph-goffman/ 
  29. E&E News, Goffman Appointment Deadlocked by EPW Committee, Nov. 2022: https://www.eenews.net/articles/committee-deadlocks-on-epa-air-nominee/ 
  30. Joe Goffman, EPA Extremist employed at top of U.S. EPA as Assistant Administrator: https://www.capito.senate.gov/news/in-the-news/capito-op-ed-joe-goffman-the-wrong-choice-to-help-lead-epa
  31. Big Green Radicals, 2014  : https://freebeacon.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/epa-report.pdf
  32. NRDC Influence Watch information: https://www.influencewatch.org/non-profit/natural-resources-defense-council-nrdc/ 
  33. Business Insider, Links of Russian Funds to NRDC Funding to fight Fracking: https://www.businessinsider.com/a-russian-linked-company-in-bermuda-is-funneling-millions-to-us-anti-fracking-groups-2015-1
  34. Capital Research Center, The Left’s War on Coal: https://capitalresearch.org/article/the-lefts-war-on-coal-part-3/
  35. Department of Energy people, by Influence Watch: https://www.influencewatch.org/government-agency/biden-administration-department-of-energy/
  36. John Kerry, Far Left Support, Fox News Aug 2022: https://www.foxnews.com/politics/john-kerrys-climate-office-rife-ties-far-left-green-groups
  37. Activist Facts, Sierra Club, Beyond Coal, Beyond Gas, Nuclear: https://www.activistfacts.com/organizations/194-sierra-club/
  38. Background on the “World Economic Forum” and Klaus Schwab: https://larryalextaunton.com/2022/10/the-great-jet-set-klaus-schwab-the-world-economic-forum-and-the-new-fascism-part-1-the-perils-of-utopia 
  39. John Podesta, Head of 300+ Billion dollars of U.S. Taxpayer funds for clean energy. Check Influence Watch to read some interesting background on his career: https://www.influencewatch.org/person/john-podesta/ 
  40. Everything we know about the Uranium One Deal, Business Insider April 28, 2015: https://www.businessinsider.com/everything-we-know-about-the-hillary-clinton-russia-uranium-scandal-2015-4?op=1 
  41. Inside the War on Coal Politico, The Agenda 2015: https://www.politico.com/agenda/story/2015/05/inside-war-on-coal-000002/
  42. EPA Retains Tools to Harm Coal Power Production, Utility Dive, July 1, 2022: https://www.utilitydive.com/news/supreme-court-epa-GHG-carbon-power-plant/626456/?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Issue:%202022-07-01%20Utility%20Dive%20Newsletter%20%5Bissue:42837%5D&utm_term=Utility%20Dive
  43. Bezos plans to give Billions to Environmental Org’s: https://www.cnbc.com/2021/09/20/jeff-bezos-pledges-1-billion-to-conservation-through-bezos-earth-fund.html
  44. Influence Watch Report of Enormous Funding of Environmental Groups, by wealthy Billionaires, 2014 : https://www.influencewatch.org/app/uploads/2020/10/chain-of-environmental-command-2014-report.pdf
  45. Green Watch (several Parts Series) Oct. 2020 Funding of Sierra Club, Greenpeace and other Environmentalists Groups to Fight Carbon. Not only coal but also natural gas production: https://capitalresearch.org/article/the-greening-of-pennsylvania-part-4/
  46. NRDC China Office: https://chinadevelopmentbrief.org/ngos/natural-resources-defense-council-nrdc/  
  47. Don’t believe the journalists of the MSM, Here are many Scientific Papers that dispute the affects of manmade Climate Change: https://wattsupwiththat.com/2022/01/14/nearly-140-scientific-papers-detail-the-minuscule-effect-co2-has-on-earths-temperature/
  48. Dr. Timothy Ball on the Corruption of Science, 2014: https://www.alachuacounty.us/Depts/epd/EPAC/BOOK%20REVIEW%20-%20‘THE%20DELIBERATE%20CORRUPTION%20OF%20CLIMATE%20SCIENCE%20by%20TIM%20BALL.pdf
  49. CO2 Coalition Website with many Facts and articles: https://co2coalition.org/facts/
  50. Ken Haapala and the Science and Environmental Policy Project:http://sepp.org/twtwfiles/2022/TWTW%209-10-2022.pdf
  51. Professor Richard Lindzen of MIT, Article on his views on Climate Change: https://clintel.org/the-imaginary-climate-crisis-how-can-we-change-the-message-a-talk-by-richard-lindzen/
  52. WUWT Sept. 2021, Summary of William Happer (Happer is Princeton Professor of Physics) and Wijngaarden   : https://wattsupwiththat.com/2021/09/21/the-greenhouse-effect-a-summary-of-wijngaarden-and-happer/
  53. Climate Activism, WUWT March 23, 2022: https://wattsupwiththat.com/2022/03/23/climate-change-is-about-control-stupid-not-the-environment/ 
  54.  POWER Magazine, Sonal Patel, Sept 9, 2022, EPA Rules likely to shut down about 86 GW of coal generation in next few years: https://www.powermag.com/group-epas-coordinated-regulatory-assault-on-coal-power-could-push-retirements-beyond-86-gw-by-2030/?oly_enc_id=3247D5884312C9W
  55. Washington Post, Earth First Eco Terrorist Group with leader (Tracy Stone-Manning) now part of Biden Administration, BLM Dept: https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/2021/07/14/did-bidens-pick-lead-bureau-land-management-support-eco-terrorism/
  56. CEI-Patrick Michaels, Case for Vacating EPA Endangerment Finding (CO2): https://cei.org/studies/the-scientific-case-for-vacating-the-epas-carbon-dioxide-endangerment-finding/
  57. Vaclav Smil, World Energy Expert Bio: https://www.science.org/content/article/meet-vaclav-smil-man-who-has-quietly-shaped-how-world-thinks-about-energy 
  58. EPA Workforce by EEOC 18,000+ employees: https://www.eeoc.gov/federal-sector/environmental-protection-agency-epa-0
  59. D. Roy Spencer  (NASA Scientist) website: https://www.drroyspencer.com/global-warming-101/
  60. NASA Engineers Presentation,” The Right Stuff Climate Team” (Retired NASA Engineers): https://www.therightclimatestuff.com
  61. Sustainability, Science or Religion, Science Matters, by Ron Clutz: https://rclutz.com/2022/01/16/why-sustainability-isnt/?like_comment=39170&_wpnonce=d774fe4278
  62. History of Control of people by Politicians and the origins of the Climate Scare: http://www.davdata.nl/math/piedpiper.html
  63. EIA Real Time Electric Power Generation by Fuels & Transmission and Distribution: https://www.eia.gov/electricity/gridmonitor/dashboard/electric_overview/balancing_authority/SC
  64. Foundation For a Free Economy article on Water & Forest Management Cause of California Fires, Jan. 15, 2025:  https://fee.org/articles/why-los-angeles-is-burning/?utm_source=salesforce&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=fee-daily
  65. Subject: Chinese Communist Party Using Nonprofit Networks To Attack American Energy, Report Suggests | The Daily Caller

https://dailycaller.com/2026/03/13/china-earthjustice-ccp-energy-oil-gas-green-foreign-agents-louisiana/

Pros and Cons of Conventional and Renewables Electricity Generation In the Red State of South Carolina, Part 1

Background: Bulk Power Supply in the S.C. Lowcountry

The wholesale (Bulk Power) electricity providers serving our region are Santee-Cooper (officially the South Carolina Public Service Authority, or SCPSA) and Dominion Energy (which replaced South Carolina Electric & Gas as the Investor-Owned Utility). Most of Palmetto Electric’s Bulk Power comes from Santee-Cooper.

Santee-Cooper is a state-owned agency operating since the 1930s. Its first electricity was generated in 1941 from the Jefferies hydroelectric dam at Moncks Corner. Today, SCPSA’s hydroelectric plants still operate with a combined capacity of 142 MW.

Since 1941, population growth, industrial expansion, and regional electrification have driven steadily increasing electricity demand. During peak-load periods, SCPSA now generates up to approximately 5,000 MW. Over more than 80 years, coal has been the primary energy source, keeping production costs at or below the U.S. average—a commendable achievement.

This low-cost electricity attracted energy-intensive industries, most notably NUCOR Steel and Century Aluminum. Affordable coal-fired power was the decisive factor in locating these facilities in South Carolina. This has benefited heavy industry and all citizens of the region, including our area around Bluffton and Hilton Head Island.

How South Carolina Uses Its Electricity

Industrial, Residential, and Commercial customers each consume approximately one-third of total S.C. electricity generation. NUCOR, Century Aluminum, and other industrial customers consume about a third of all electricity generated by S.C. utilities.

The Scale of Industrial Energy Demand

Aluminum and steel production are extremely energy-intensive. It takes approximately 6 kWh of electricity to produce just one pound of aluminum from aluminum oxide powder—and that is only to create raw ingots, not including the energy to refine bauxite ore or form finished products.

At full production, NUCOR and Century Aluminum together consume more Bulk Power on a given day than the entire island of Hilton Head uses during its highest winter peak-load demand day.

Affordable electricity supports economic prosperity, employment, and national security—in addition to keeping our homes heated and cooled.

Coal-Fired Generating Stations in The Low Country of S.C.

The Cross Generating Station, located about 100 miles north of Hilton Head Island, has four units built between 1983 and 2009 with a combined capacity of approximately 2,390 MW. All four units are equipped with stack-cleaning equipment; the visible stack plume is harmless water vapor.

Winter Storm Fern Proved the Importance of Coal-Fueled Electricity Generation

Cross and Winyah coal plants provided over 80% of the electricity consumed in the S.C. Lowcountry during the Winter Storm Fern peak demand period (January 26 – February 4, 2026). Natural gas and solar generation are also shown in the chart below. Not shown: the 322 MW of nuclear generation from Santee-Cooper’s one-third share of V.C. Summer Nuclear Plant.

The chart above is the actual “Bulk Power Supply” as generated by SCPSA, which provides the wholesale power to Palmetto Electric. Note that over 80% is from coal generation. Also, note the small contribution of solar. Not shown is the 322 MW of nuclear generation from Dominion Energy.

The Net Zero Carbon Mandate and Rising Costs

The least-cost fuels for electricity generation are coal and nuclear. However, SCPSA and other S.C. utilities have been ordered by the S.C. Legislature to transition away from coal toward Net Zero Carbon. The path ahead is described in the Santee-Cooper Integrated Resource Plan (IRP).

As can be seen on the portfolio transition, the plan is to reduce coal from over 55% to about 23% by 2040. 

The S.C. Legislation to Increase Electricity Costs

South Carolina law (S.C. Code Ann. §58-37-40) directs the retirement of coal-fired generation:

S.C. General Assembly — H.3194 (Session 124, 2021–2022)

Santee-Cooper’s analysis demonstrated that the Net Zero CO₂ by 2050 portfolio would be higher in costs and involve more risk for customers than the Economically Optimized Portfolio. Several supplemental analyses were performed reflecting the retirement of the Winyah generating station by end of 2028 or 2030.

Understanding Your Electric Bill

The major component of electricity production cost is primary energy (fuel). When wholesale power costs rise, retail electric bills follow. For a Combined Cycle natural gas plant, fuel alone constitutes about 90% of production cost. If natural gas prices double, so does the cost of electricity. Coal is a low-cost, price-stable source of primary energy, benefiting all ratepayers.

Why Transitioning to Renewables Raises Electricity Costs

The Core Problem: Backup Power

When the sun is not shining and the wind is not blowing, power must be supplied immediately by backup generation. In the U.S., that backup has primarily been natural gas. In some cases—Hawaii and New England—diesel, kerosene, and jet fuel have been used when other sources were unavailable.

Electricity must be generated the instant it is needed. Wind and sunshine may be free, but backup power is not. The charts below show world generation by fuel. Note the coal consumption of Asia compared to the U.S.

This shows the absurdity of the path to Net-Zero Carbon when the entire world coal consumption is considered. If America’s coal consumption went to zero, it would barely make a difference in total CO2 emissions.

Credit for the chart above goes to Mr. Mike Caravaggio who prepared and posted on LinkedIn.

Case Study: Hawaii — An Energy Island

Hawaii is not connected to the mainland grid, making it a telling example. In 2021, 76% of its generation fuel was diesel. Hawaii once had a 180 MW coal plant that produced its lowest-cost electricity—even with imported coal. After transitioning to renewables, diesel backup became dominant when the sun set or wind dropped. Because diesel is among the most expensive generation fuels, Hawaii now has the highest electricity rates of all 50 states.

Case Study: New England

States that have retired coal plants have experienced sharply escalating costs, including California, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Vermont, and Maine. During Winter Storm Fern, New England generated roughly one-third of its electricity from diesel for several days. Their plan to import Canadian hydropower failed when Canada needed its own capacity during extreme cold.

Electricity Costs by State

The pattern is clear: states with the least coal power tend to have the highest electricity costs.

The state of Tennessee for some reason was not included in the chart above. TN does in fact have some of the lowest electricity costs in the U.S. according to: https://findenergy.com/tn/ The low cost is attributed to a lot of old hydroelectric power, considerable nuclear and a still large coal fleet. TN average electricity cost is about $0.129/kWh.

Case Study: Germany

Germany began its coal transition in 2011 under the Energiewende policy. Once Europe’s strongest manufacturer, Germany has experienced de-industrialization driven by skyrocketing electricity costs—now approximately $0.33/kWh, even higher than Hawaii.

Dr. Lars Schernikau is an energy expert and knows a lot about European energy policies, including Germany. Here is a quote from Dr. Schernikau in the Engineering News:

Schernikau was bluntly pessimistic about the true financial viability of wind and solar energy on a grid scale.

“There is no way you can make honest money with wind and solar. It’s not possible. When I say honest money, I mean without somebody else’s money, because you are living off somebody’s subsidies, which is paid by taxpayers,” he said.

He illustrated this by pointing to the economic problems with high solarpenetration in markets such as Germany, where an oversupply of solar energy has led to a significant drop in prices. In May, for example, the price of solar energy in Germany fell by 50%, reducing the earnings of solar producers. Negative power price days are at an all time high in Germany and other countries, Schernikau pointed out.

The impact of high electricity costs on households was another area of concern. Schernikau cited a March report from the German government auditor Bundesnetzagentur, which revealed that energy poverty in Germany had risen to 25%, meaning one in four households is now classified as energy poor.

So, I would ask. Why is South Carolina following the same Net Zero path of Germany?

Natural Gas for Electric Power Generation

Intermittent sources like solar and wind must be backed up by dispatchable generation—gas turbines or reciprocating engines (RICE). The chart below shows a typical daily generation profile in California. Solar (yellow) is strong for about six hours; as the sun sets, Dispatchable power must ramp up sharply.

Here is the generation by fuel for the lower 48 states for the first 24 days of January 2026. Thanks again to Mike Caravaggio from EPRI for posting this on LinkedIn.

A reliable Grid should have a balanced generation portfolio. In my experience, 85% Dispatchable or Base load generation works well and has been proven.

A balanced generation portfolio works best with at least 85% dispatchable power generation capacity.

Fuel Price Stability: Coal vs. Natural Gas

Natural gas prices are volatile, especially during winter when home heating competes with power generation for pipeline capacity. 

A key point on the generation of electricity: The fuel cost is the single largest component of the operating dollar for the production of electricity. So, if much solar and wind is installed, then it must be backed up with Dispatchable electricity generation. Usually in the U.S., that fuel for Dispatchable, backup power is natural gas. As can be seen from the examples of New England, California, Hawaii, Germany and the UK, the cost of that backup fuel matters when retail electricity prices are compared.

The chart below compares natural gas prices (blue) with coal prices (black) since 1980.

Conclusions

  • Coal provides the fuel to generate reliable electricity at amongst the lowest cost in the world. This is based on actual results and actual rates, not on economic models or expert opinions.
  • Modern coal plants like Cross are clean; their ash is recycled for cement and sheetrock manufacture.
  • Nuclear is excellent but new construction takes a decade and costs tens of billions (Vogtle 3 & 4: 10 years, $30+ billion).
  • Natural gas already provides ~43% of U.S. electricity (2025)—a high share for a pipeline-delivered fuel. Coal plants balance price volatility and store weeks of fuel on-site, an intrinsic grid security advantage.
  • The author recommends the S.C. Legislature repeal the Net Zero Carbon law and allow SCPSA and AI Data Center developers to pursue new coal-fueled generation

Part 2 will follow and show some more reasons why wind and solar although using “Free” fuel, cost more.

Respectfully and very truly yours,

Dick Storm, March 11, 2026