SC tech hub gets $45M in federal money for energy projects • SC Daily Gazette

COLOMBIA — A conglomerate of South Carolina universities, a federal nuclear research laboratory and the state’s economic development agency has received a $45 million federal grant to create a technology center focused on developing new energy technologies.

The center, known as SC Nexus, was one of just a dozen federally recognized technology centers awarded federal funding Tuesday after a more than year-long application process with the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration.

The U.S. Department of Commerce has designated a total of 31 centers across the country that aim to create more high-paying technology jobs and make the country more competitive in high-tech industries. However, only 12 of those centers have received federal funding.

“We are incredibly excited. Today is truly a transformational day for South Carolina and for Nexus,” said Ashely Teasdel, deputy assistant secretary of the South Carolina Department of Commerce. “This effort is truly about strengthening the state and America’s economic competitiveness and national security.”

The effort has been a priority for Gov. Henry McMaster and members of the state Legislature, with $15 million set aside as a one-time expense in the proposed budget and $5 million in recurring support.

SC Nexus will allocate the federal funds it receives to four projects:

• Building a simulator to test the nation’s ability to protect its power grid from hackers and cyberattacks. The simulator will cost $10 million and will be operated by Savannah River National Laboratory near Aiken.
• $12.5 million upgrades to Clemson University’s electrical grid simulator. The simulator, located at a former U.S. Navy base in North Charleston, can mimic any country’s electrical grid and is connected to wind turbine test equipment. The effort will help improve renewable energy generation, such as wind and solar.
• Building a pilot battery production line to be operated by the University of South Carolina. The $10.2 million production line will help researchers develop and manufacture longer-lasting, faster-charging batteries essential to the state’s growing electric vehicle industry. Better batteries are also needed to improve storage of energy generated by solar panels and wind turbines for use when the sun isn’t shining or the wind isn’t blowing.
• $12.6 million for the S.C. Technical College System to encourage more people to work in energy-focused industries and develop courses to train more workers in those fields. Teasdel said those would be mobile labs that could be transported to Allendale, Bamberg, Barnwell, Orangeburg and Union counties, five economically challenged counties where the Nexus program is particularly focused.

The Department of Commerce will create a division to oversee Nexus projects and will continue to seek additional funding. Two of the six projects originally planned did not receive federal funding and are currently under review. At least one will not proceed as originally planned.

“This is just the beginning for us, and we’re excited about the growth potential, the economic competitiveness that we’re going to have, and also the fact that we’re going to have a really, really big impact on national security,” Teasdel said.

The Commerce Department did not have a complete cost estimate for all six projects as of Tuesday.

“From hundreds of applications, our state was selected as one of twelve technology hubs to receive funding to address the growing energy demands and needs of our nation,” Sen. Lindsey Graham said in a statement Tuesday afternoon. “Chapeau bas to the South Carolina Department of Commerce and all involved in preparing this application.”