Easley Combined Utilities outlines power, water and sewer capacity, aging infrastructure and upcoming funding needs

Andy Savick, a representative of Easley Combined Utilities, told the Easley City Council at a work session that the utility is positioned to meet current demand but is facing several infrastructure and contract milestones that could affect future costs and investment. He briefed the council on the electric, water and sewer systems, noting ownership in the Catawba nuclear plant and active planning for aging sewer lines.

The update matters because Easley’s utility decisions affect rates, annexation policy and where new development may connect to sewer service. Savick said the utility owns a share of the Catawba plant through the Piedmont Municipal Power Agency joint-action arrangement (PMPA) and that the city’s base-load contract was extended to mirror the life of the plant "through 2063 or the life of the plant." He said supplemental power contracts (currently with Santee Cooper) expire Dec. 31, 2028, and replacements must begin Jan. 1, 2029, and that negotiations are ongoing.

Savick gave system counts and trends: roughly 17,000 electric customers (up from about 15,000 ten years ago), about 175 miles of underground electric lines and 235 miles of overhead lines, and roughly 15,000 water customers. He said Easley’s Saluda Lake treatment plant has an 18 million gallons per day…