Renewable Energy Manufacturing Tax Credit

Note: According to the SC Department of Revenue,this income tax program is available for the period from January 1, 2010 to December 31, 2015. The last applications for this credit are due on January 31st, 2015.

South Carolina offers a ten percent income tax credit to the manufacturers of renewable energy operations* for tax years 2010 through 2015.

In order to qualify, a business must:

• manufacture renewable energy systems and components in South Carolina for solar, wind, geothermal, or other renewable energy uses
• invest a minimum of $50 million in a Tier IV county, $100 million in a Tier III county, $150 million in a Tier II county, and at least $200 million in a Tier I county in new qualifying plant and equipment expenditures the year the tax credit is claimed
• create one full-time job that pays 125% of the state's annual median wage for every $1 million in capital investment qualifying for the credit
• qualifying jobs must pay at least one hundred twenty-five percent of this State's average annual median wage as defined by the Department of Commerce

A taxpayer's total credit cannot exceed $500,000 for any year and $5 million total for all years. Unused credits may be carried forward for fifteen years after the tax year in which a qualified expenditure was made. The tax credit is nonrefundable.

Applicants must file a request for the credit to the State Energy Office (SEO) by January 31 for expenses incurred the previous tax year. Qualifying expenditures** must be certified by the SEO. The SEO is required to notify applicant of approval and approved credit amount by the following March. Tax credit cannot be combined with any other state tax incentive.

*"Renewable energy operations" are limited to manufacturers of systems and components that are used or useful in manufacturing renewable energy equipment for the generation, storage, testing and research and development, and transmission or distribution of electricity from renewable sources, including specialized packaging for the renewable energy equipment manufactured at the facility.

**"Qualifying investment" means investment in land, buildings, machinery, and fixtures for expansion of an existing facility or establishment of a new facility in  South Carolina. Qualifying investment does not include relocating an existing facility in South Carolina to another location in the State without additional capital investment.