ATLANTA – Southern Company today reported 2002 earnings of $1.32 billion, or $1.86 per share, as demand for electricity continued to grow, driven in part by colder than normal weather in the fourth quarter.

Excluding the impact from weather of 5 cents per share and one-time items, which were primarily tax-related, of 6 cents per share, earnings for 2002 were $1.75 per share.

The full-year results compared with earnings from continuing operations of $1.12 billion, or $1.62 per share, in 2001.

For the fourth quarter, Southern Company reported earnings of $167 million, or 23 cents per share, compared with $116 million, or 16 cents per share, in the fourth quarter of 2001.

Allen Franklin, Southern Company chairman, president and chief executive officer, said the strong results in the fourth quarter were boosted by cold weather, continued customer growth, solid results from competitive generation and the overall impact of rate proceedings in Alabama and Florida.

“Our 2002 results clearly positioned us as one of the industry’s best performers,” Franklin said. “Hot weather during the month of September and below-normal temperatures at the end of the year kept electricity sales strong despite the weak economy, while our employees’ focus on executing the Southern Company strategy ensured another successful year.

“In 2003, we remain committed to keeping our promise to deliver solid results to our shareholders and customers.”

Revenues for the fourth quarter were $2.46 billion, compared with $2.16 billion in the same period a year earlier. Full-year revenues were $10.55 billion, compared with $10.15 billion in 2001.

Reviewing operations, Franklin said electricity use by retail customers in Southern Company`s four-state service area increased 4.5 percent in 2002. In-home electricity needs were up 9.5 percent. Electricity use by commercial customers -- offices, stores and other non-manufacturing firms – increased 2.8 percent. Industrial energy use increased 1.8 percent.

Total sales of electricity to Southern Company`s customers in the Southeast, including sales to other utilities, increased 4.6 percent.

In conjunction with this earnings announcement, Southern Company has posted on its Web site a package of detailed financial information on its fourth quarter and 2002 performance. These materials are available at 7:30 a.m. EST Jan. 27 at www.southerncompany.com.

Southern Company`s financial analyst call will be at 1 p.m. EST Jan. 27, at which time Franklin and Chief Financial Officer Gale Klappa will discuss earnings and earnings guidance and provide a general business update. Investors, media and the public may listen to a live Webcast of the call at www.southerncompany.com. A replay of the Webcast will be available at the site for 10 days.

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.

Forward Looking Statements Note: Certain information contained in this release is forward-looking information based on current expectations and plans that involve risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking information includes, among other things, statements concerning Southern Company being positioned as one of the industry’s best performers and its ability to deliver solid results to shareholders and customers in 2003. Southern Company cautions that there are certain factors that can cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking information that has been provided. The reader is cautioned not to put undue reliance on this forward-looking information, which is not a guarantee of future performance and is subject to a number of uncertainties and other factors, many of which are outside the control of Southern Company; accordingly, there can be no assurance that such indicated results will be realized.

The following factors, in addition to those discussed in Southern Company`s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended Dec. 31, 2001, and subsequent securities filings, could cause results to differ materially from management expectations as suggested by such forward-looking information: the impact of recent and future federal and state regulatory change, including legislative and regulatory initiatives regarding deregulation and restructuring of the electric utility industry and also changes in environmental and other laws and regulations to which Southern Company and its subsidiaries are subject, as well as changes in application of existing laws and regulations; current and future litigation, including the EPA civil action against certain subsidiaries of Southern Company; the effects, extent and timing of additional competition in the markets in which Southern Company`s subsidiaries operate; the impact of fluctuations in commodity prices, interest rates and customer demand; state and federal rate regulation; political and legal conditions and developments in the United States; the performance of projects undertaken by the non-traditional business and the success of efforts to invest in and develop new opportunities; internal restructuring or other restructuring options that may be pursued; potential business strategies, including acquisitions or dispositions of assets or businesses, which cannot be assured to be completed or beneficial to Southern Company or its subsidiaries; the ability of counterparties of Southern Company and its subsidiaries to make payments as and when due; the effects of, and changes in, economic conditions in the areas in which Southern Company`s subsidiaries operate, including the current soft economy; the direct or indirect effects on Southern Company’s business resulting from the terrorist incidents on Sept. 11, 2001, or any similar such incidents or responses to such incidents; financial market conditions and the results of financing efforts; the timing and acceptance of Southern Company`s new product and service offerings; the ability of Southern Company to obtain additional generating capacity at competitive prices; and weather and other natural phenomena. # # #