Southern Company Chief Operating Officer Tom Fanning today announced that John Pemberton has been named senior vice president and general counsel of operations, effective June 1.  In this role, Pemberton will direct legal services and external affairs for Southern Company’s operations organization, which includes Southern Company Generation, Southern Company Transmission and Southern Power. Additionally, he will oversee regulatory matters, as well as internal and external communication for these divisions.  

Currently vice president, government affairs, Pemberton manages Southern Company’s Washington office and directs the company’s federal outreach activities.

“Southern Company is in the midst of the largest capital investment program in its history to build and expand the infrastructure needed to meet rising energy demand reliably, affordably and with a cleaner footprint,” said Fanning. “John’s sound business judgment and experience in the regulatory and policy arenas make him an excellent addition to the operations executive team during this crucial time.”

Prior to joining Southern Company, Pemberton served as chief of staff for the Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of Air and Radiation from 2001-2003, where he helped manage the office’s efforts on several utility-related policy issues.  Pemberton also was Republican chief counsel for the U.S. Senate Environment and Public Works Committee and has been the associate director for environmental issues for the National Cattleman’s Beef Association and chief policy counsel for the Washington Legal Foundation.

A native of Omaha, Neb., Pemberton is a graduate of Southern Methodist University, as well as the Creighton University School of Law.

Pemberton’s successor is expected to be named by early August.

With 4.4 million customers and more than 42,000 megawatts of generating capacity, Atlanta-based Southern Company (NYSE: SO) is the premier energy company serving the Southeast. 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 below the national average. Southern Company is consistently listed among the top U.S. electric service providers in customer satisfaction by the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI). Visit our Web site at www.southerncompany.com.