SitePath › County map › South Carolina
Solar Permitting Intelligence

South Carolina

46 Counties 5 Low/Moderate Risk 18 High/Very High Risk 0 Active Moratoria
State policy: No binding RPS

Grade distribution

B 5C 23D 16F 2

Overview

South Carolina has 46 counties tracked in the SitePath solar permitting index. 5 (11%) are graded A or B, meaning they present low to moderate permitting risk for utility-scale solar projects. 23 counties sit in the C range — moderate risk with meaningful process uncertainty. 18 counties are rated D or F (39%) — high to very high risk, often due to active moratoria, restrictive setback ordinances, or strong local opposition.

The most favorable jurisdictions in South Carolina include Kershaw County (grade B), Georgetown County (grade B), Union County (grade B). The most challenging include Richland County (grade D), Beaufort County (grade F), Lexington County (grade F).

The state's policy environment — No binding RPS — presents headwinds for renewable development, making county-level permitting conditions especially important to evaluate project by project. No South Carolina counties currently have an active utility-scale solar moratorium.

All counties — sorted by risk score (best first)

County Grade Score Trajectory Moratorium
Kershaw CountyB39↑
Georgetown CountyB39—
Union CountyB39—
Williamsburg CountyB40↓
Marlboro CountyB41↓
Bamberg CountyC42↓
Allendale CountyC43—
Chesterfield CountyC43↓
Marion CountyC43↓
Abbeville CountyC43↓
Dillon CountyC45↓
Berkeley CountyC45↓
Laurens CountyC45—
Darlington CountyC45↓
Saluda CountyC46↓
Lee CountyC46↓
McCormick CountyC46↓
Aiken CountyC46↓
Chester CountyC47—
Fairfield CountyC47—
Cherokee CountyC47↓
Newberry CountyC47↓
Edgefield CountyC47↓
Sumter CountyC48↓
Barnwell CountyC49↓
Oconee CountyC51↑
Colleton CountyC51↓
Jasper CountyC51↓
Greenwood CountyD52↓
Hampton CountyD52↓
Anderson CountyD53↓
Florence CountyD53↓
Calhoun CountyD54↓
Orangeburg CountyD55↓
Clarendon CountyD55↓
Dorchester CountyD58↓
Charleston CountyD58—
Lancaster CountyD58—
Spartanburg CountyD59↓
Pickens CountyD59↓
Greenville CountyD60—
Horry CountyD61—
York CountyD61↓
Richland CountyD61—
Beaufort CountyF67↓
Lexington CountyF69↓

See the full interactive map

County grades, scores, and ordinance data are also available on the interactive county map with filtering by grade, state, and risk factor.

Open the county map →

About SitePath scoring

Every U.S. county is scored 0–100 on solar permitting risk (lower is friendlier to development). The grade is a weighted composite of compliance stringency, market saturation, regulatory trajectory, and data uncertainty. Every figure traces back to a primary government document. Read the full methodology →

SitePath Intelligence is a research platform. Data verified as of 2026-05-02. Scores update on a quarterly review cycle.