Energy, Tech Companies Reach Agreement to Support Clean Energy Programs

Duke Energy (NYSE: DUK), Amazon, Google, Microsoft, and Nucor recently announced agreements to explore new and innovative approaches to support carbon-free energy generation and help utilities serve the future energy needs of large businesses in North Carolina and South Carolina.

The announcement was made at the White House Summit on Domestic Nuclear Deployment.

In memorandums of understanding (MOUs) signed last month, the companies proposed developing new rate structures, known as “tariffs” in the utility industry, designed specifically to lower the long-term costs of investing in clean energy technologies like new nuclear and long-duration storage through early commitments.

The proposed Accelerating Clean Energy (ACE) tariffs would enable large customers like Amazon, Google, Microsoft, and Nucor to directly support carbon-free energy generation investments through innovative financing structures and contributions that address project risk to lower costs of emerging technologies. ACE tariffs would facilitate beneficial on-site generation at customer facilities, participation in load flexibility programs and investments in clean energy assets – features attractive to customers with large-scale energy needs.

The ACE framework also would include a Clean Transition Tariff (CTT) – the key feature enabling Duke Energy to provide individualized portfolios of new carbon-free energy to commercial and industrial customers. The CTT would match clean-energy generation and customer load to accelerate overall grid decarbonization. This would be a voluntary program for larger customers seeking to advance their clean energy goals, and it would include protections for non-participating customers.

The ACE tariffs would represent new, voluntary pricing structures for Duke Energy's large commercial and industrial customers. Duke Energy's five-year capital plan will continue as planned, and these tariffs would be subject to regulatory approvals in North Carolina and South Carolina.

“Nucor is one of the cleanest and most sustainable steel producers in the world and has proudly operated in the Carolinas since the 1960s,” said Greg Murphy, Nucor's executive vice president of Business Services, Sustainability, and General Counsel.

“We are excited to see our partnership with Duke Energy evolve through this shared commitment to bring the next generation of clean, reliable, safe and affordable energy to our region while also supporting our net-zero goal.”

South Carolina Research Authority Names New Members

The South Carolina Research authority (SCRA) announced it has named two new member companies, MyUI.AI and SMPL-C. In addition, MASDEV, LLC, dba Custom Donations, received a $50,000 Acceleration Grant.

All SCRA Member Companies receive coaching and access to SCRA’s member benefits, startup resources, can apply for grant funding, and have the potential to be considered for investment from the SCRA’s investment affiliate, SC Launch Inc.

MASDEV, LLC is a Florence-based information technology company that is providing a new cloud-based interface for online donations. Custom Donations can be embedded into any website, regardless of CMS type and the interface is designed for churches, nonprofits, etc., and allows for customized website branding.

MyUI.AI LLC is a Simpsonville-based information technology startup that enables people with disabilities to interact with customized, as opposed to default and potentially inaccessible, digital interfaces.

SMPL-C Corporation is based in Mount Pleasant and is an information technology startup that offers a simple and affordable SaaS platform solution for defense contractors to understand and follow Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC)-mandated regulations, ensuring consistent compliance to maintain and grow their valuable DoD contracts.  

Grant funding is made possible, in part, by SCRA’s tax credit program, the Industry Partnership Fund, and its contributions that fuel the state’s innovation economy.

Contributors to the IPF receive a dollar-for-dollar state tax credit, making it an easy and effective way to help one of the fastest-growing segments of the South Carolina economy. 

Shrimping Season Opens in South Carolina

South Carolina’s favorite seafood will soon be more widely available at docks and markets along the coast.

Commercial shrimp trawling opened in all legal South Carolina waters on Tuesday, June 4, 2024.

In an average year, shrimp season opens in full by late May, typically after the opening of eight smaller provisional areas in the state’s outer waters. This year those provisional areas opened on April 19, allowing shrimpers to begin harvesting some larger white shrimp from farther offshore while still protecting most of the spawning population closer to shore.

South Carolina Department of Natural Resources (SCDNR) officials set the opening date for shrimp season each year based on the conditions of the shrimp themselves.

Aboard both commercial and agency vessels, biologists sample and study white shrimp frequently in late spring. One of the things they’re looking for is evidence that a majority of female white shrimp have already spawned at least once.

“We've been conducting weekly sampling along our coast since late April to document that spawning activity,” said biologist Jeff Brunson, who leads the agency's crustacean management.

Opening the season too soon – and allowing trawlers to catch females that have not had an opportunity to spawn – could reduce the size of the fall white shrimp crop, which are the offspring of the spring white shrimp.

“Given the lack of extreme cold weather over the winter, the abundance of white shrimp in the estuaries throughout the state and the advanced ovarian development of shrimp, we feel good about the timing of the season opener,” said Brunson.

South Carolina's commercial shrimp calendar has historically had three peak periods. In the spring, shrimpers typically capitalize on the influx of roe white shrimp, large, early-season shrimp that generally fetch higher prices and generate the most value for fishing effort.

The summer months are defined by a peak in brown shrimp, which are similar to white shrimp in size and taste. In the fall and into winter, shrimpers bring in a second crop of white shrimp; the offspring of the spring roe shrimp.

Because white shrimp are a short-lived species that are sensitive to cold water temperatures and unusually wet or dry summers, their numbers can fluctuate dramatically from year to year. However, they’re also prolific spawners – which means that the populations can quickly rebound even after a poor year or season.

Many Cars in South Carolina Still Have Recalled Takata Airbags

Ten years after the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) mandated the recall of Takata airbags nationwide because of the risk they pose for bodily harm – or even death – to occupants, more than 6.4 million vehicles in the U.S. still have those airbags, according to CARFAX data.

More than 2.5 million – roughly 40 percent of all these unfixed vehicles – are located in states that NHTSA calls Zone A, according to CARFAX vehicle history data. These states “pose the highest threat to safety” because of their high heat and humidity.

They are Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, and Texas.

Extended exposure to heat and humidity can cause Takata airbag inflators to deploy far more explosively than expected. That excessive force can launch pieces of metal surrounding the inflator into a vehicle's cabin like shrapnel, posing a high risk to occupants.

NHTSA says 27 people in the U.S. have been killed by these airbags and at least 400 have been injured. More than 67 million airbags in more than 40 million vehicles have been recalled in models from 19 automakers. 

“Even after a decade of a dedicated and committed effort by the vehicle manufacturers, government, non-profits and businesses, it's concerning that so many affected vehicles continue to be driven on U.S. roads with these potentially dangerous airbags sitting inside,” said Faisal Hasan, CARFAX general manager for data.

“It's easy to see recall fatigue settle in for many consumers, but they need to act. We know that raising the alarm with local media can make that happen urgently. Getting an airbag replaced is quick, free to them, and could save the life of a loved one – or their own!”

For more info, visit https://www.carfax.com/recall.

Allow us to tell your company's Business Narrative. Send your press release to David Dykes or for more information email [email protected]