ATLANTA – Southern Company today announced a regular quarterly dividend of 38 ¾ cents per share on the company’s common stock, payable Sept. 6, 2006, to shareholders of record Aug. 7, 2006.

This marks the 235th consecutive quarter – dating back to 1948 – that Southern Company will have paid a dividend to its shareholders.

With 4.3 million customers and more than 40,000 megawatts of generating capacity, Atlanta-based Southern Company (NYSE: SO) is the premier energy company serving the Southeast, one of America’s fastest-growing regions. A leading U.S. producer of electricity, Southern Company owns electric utilities in four states and a growing competitive generation company, 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 significantly below the national average. Southern Company has earned the highest ranking among the nation's electric utilities in the American Customer Satisfaction Index for seven years in a row. Visit our Web site at www.southerncompany.com. ###