BIRMINGHAM, Ala., Sept. 2, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Plant Vogtle's Unit 1 resumed producing electricity early this morning following an automatic shutdown.

On Aug. 31 at 9:06 a.m. ET while plant workers were performing equipment maintenance, Plant Vogtle Unit 1 automatically shut down. All safety systems operated as designed and expected.

All maintenance reviews were completed, and Plant Vogtle Unit 1 was returned to service safely and without incident. For competitive reasons, the company does not share when the unit is expected to be back to full power.

Unit 2 is operating safely at 96 percent in preparation for a routine, scheduled refueling outage.

About Southern Nuclear:

Southern Nuclear, a subsidiary of Southern Company, operates the Edwin I. Hatch Nuclear Plant near Baxley, Ga., the Joseph M. Farley Nuclear Plant near Dothan, Ala. and the Alvin W. Vogtle Electric Generating Plant near Waynesboro, Ga.

About Southern Company:

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 is the parent firm of electric utilities in four states and a growing competitive generation company, as well as fiber optics and wireless communications companies. Southern Company brands are known for excellent customer service, high reliability and retail electric prices that are below the national average. Southern Company was named the World's Most Admired Electric and Gas Utility by Fortune magazine in 2011, and is consistently listed among the top U.S. electric service providers in customer satisfaction by the American Customer Satisfaction Index. Visit our website at www.southerncompany.com.  

SOURCE Southern Company