ZEELAND, Mich. – Southern Energy Inc., a unit of Southern Company, announced plans today to build an 830-megawatt plant in Zeeland, Mich., to help supply the growing demand for electricity in the upper Midwest.

Construction of the natural gas-fired plant is scheduled to begin this month. The power station is scheduled to begin commercial operation in June 2001 with 300 megawatts of capacity, with the additional 530 megawatts beginning commercial operation by June 2003.

Southern Company Energy Marketing, the energy marketing and risk-management unit of Southern Energy, will market the plant’s output in the wholesale power markets. The facility will use advanced natural-gas combined-cycle technology and state-of-the-art emission control equipment to maximize efficiency and environmental performance.

Once completed, the Zeeland power station, combined with a recently announced 550-megawatt plant in Arkansas and other projects under construction, will bring the power-generation capacity owned or controlled by Southern Energy in the United States to more than 10,000 megawatts.

“The Zeeland plant will help meet the increasing energy needs in the power markets of Michigan,” said Richard J. Pershing, chief executive of Southern Energy’s Americas Group.

Southern Energy Inc. – with operations in 12 countries on five continents – develops, builds, owns and operates power production and delivery facilities and provides a broad range of services to utilities and industrial companies around the world. Its Southern Company Energy Marketing unit provides energy marketing, risk management and financial services and other energy-related commodities, products and services to customers in North America.

Southern Energy’s subsidiaries and affiliates include Freeport Power Co. in the Bahamas; Western Power Distribution in England; Bewag, the electric utility serving Berlin, Germany; EDELNOR, the power producer serving northern Chile; CEMIG, an electric utility in Brazil; the Power Generation Company of Trinidad and Tobago; the Alicura power station in Argentina; the Southern Energy Europe marketing and risk management operation, based in the Netherlands; Southern Energy Asia-Pacific, with operations in the Philippines, China and Australia; and U.S. power stations in Massachusetts, New York, Texas, California, Virginia and Indiana.

Southern Company (NYSE: SO), the largest producer of electricity in the United States, is also the parent firm of Alabama Power, Georgia Power, Gulf Power, Mississippi Power and Savannah Electric.

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