nuke fiasco aftermath

Regulators say SCANA Corp. is hiding the truth.

Office of Regulatory Staff officials want what SCANA and its SC Electric & Gas subsidiary gave law enforcement but won’t give them.

“Documents we have discovered indicate SCE&G has been more interested in protecting its profits than the customers,” said ORS attorney Matthew Richardson.

“We filed this motion for full disclosure because the truth has to come out.”

Nanette Edwards, acting ORS executive director, thanked Gov. Henry Mc-Master for directing Santee Cooper to make documents provided to the Department of Justice available.

“ORS has not received the documents SCE&G provided to law enforcement authorities,” Edwards said.

“We’re grateful for San-tee Cooper’s cooperation.”

State and federal officials have been investigating the Lexington County company since it walked away after spending $9 billion on a nuclear power project in nearby Fairfield County.

Almost $2 billion of that came from its ratepayers.

Although the two reactors have been abandoned, SCE&G continues to charge its 700,000 ratepayers $34 million a month in higher rates to pay for the project.

Prompted by angry constituents, lawmakers have held hearings and written proposed laws. But since they went into session in January, senators and House members have failed to agree on what to do.

Chronicle readers have written and called for a rate reduction that lawmakers can’t seem to agree on.