Hurricane Ian damaged beyond repair an emergency Tainter gate at the Pinopolis Lock, just the second time in the 81-year history of Santee Cooper’s Jefferies Hydroelectric Station that the 80-ton gate needed to be replaced.
The emergency Tainter gate allows us to safely perform maintenance on the lock's upper miter gates. The gate also is designed to mitigate an unlikely “free flow” incident and, in the event of such an emergency, it will raise to choke off the flow of water through the lock system.
We partnered with locally headquartered W International in Goose Creek, South Carolina, to fabricate and assemble the new gate for the Pinopolis Lock, which connects Lake Moultrie to the Tailrace Canal and the Cooper River.
“Consistent with our mission, our goal is to work with businesses and industry in the state to help South Carolina thrive,” said Jimmy Staton, Santee Cooper President and CEO. “We’re proud to be able to say the gate was made right here in the Lowcountry and that we, as South Carolinians, are working together to energize South Carolina.”
Once fully assembled, the Tainter gate was loaded on a barge and made the near eight-hour trip up the West Branch of the Cooper River.
Crews from Superior Cranes Inc, which has a location in Moncks Corner, were responsible for the installation. The process of getting the gate secured to the crane and lowered into the water took several hours. Once it was lowered into place, divers from Mainstream Diving began installing the two trunnion pins on which the gate rotates and securing the counterweight chains.
The project cost just over $4 million, with approximately 98% of the dollars spent with companies located within South Carolina.
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