ATLANTA – Southern Company today announced a regular quarterly dividend of 34¼ cents per share on the company’s common stock, payable March 6, 2003, to shareholders of record Feb. 3, 2003.

This marks the 221st consecutive quarter – dating back to 1948 – that Southern Company will have paid a dividend to its shareholders.

With 4 million customers and nearly 37,000 megawatts of generating capacity, Atlanta-based Southern Company (NYSE: SO) is the premier super-regional energy company in the Southeast and a leading U.S. producer of electricity. Southern Company owns electric utilities in four states, a growing competitive generation company, an energy services business and a competitive retail natural gas business, as well as fiber optics and wireless communications. Southern Company brands are known for excellent customer service, high reliability and retail electric prices that are 15 percent below the national average. Southern Company has been named No. 1 on Fortune magazine’s 2002 “America’s Most Admired Companies” list in the Electric and Gas Utility industry. Southern Company has more than 500,000 shareholders, making its common stock one of the most widely held in the United States. Visit the Southern Company Web site at www.southerncompany.com. # # #