ATLANTA – Southern Company today announced a regular quarterly dividend of 37¼ cents per share on the company’s common stock, payable Sept. 6, 2005, to shareholders of record Aug. 1, 2005.

This marks the 231st consecutive quarter – dating back to 1948 – that Southern Company will have paid a dividend to its shareholders.

With more than 4 million customers and nearly 39,000 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 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 ranked the nation`s top energy utility in the American Customer Satisfaction Index six years in a row. 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.

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