ATLANTA, May 23, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Southern Company today announced the election of E. Jenner Wood III to its board of directors. Wood currently is chairman, president and CEO of SunTrust Bank's Atlanta/Georgia division, responsible for managing client-focused teammate engagement, and driving sales and service strategies in the Greater Atlanta region and throughout Georgia. Wood also served on the board of Georgia Power, Southern Company's largest subsidiary, for the past 10 years.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20120523/CL12607)

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20080801/SOCOLOGO )

"The utility industry is an extremely capital-intensive business," said Southern Company Chairman, President and CEO Thomas A. Fanning. "Jenner's banking and financial-market expertise is a tremendous asset as the Southern Company system navigates a large capital program to provide customers with clean, safe, reliable and affordable energy."

Fanning also remarked that Wood's extensive knowledge of the Southeast's business climate, coupled with his experience on the Georgia Power board of directors for more than a decade, uniquely position him to provide immediate value to the board.

From June 2002 until his election in his current role in April 2010, Wood served as chairman, president and CEO of SunTrust Bank Central Group, having responsibility for Georgia and Tennessee.

Wood has more than 35 years of experience in the banking industry, and advanced through various management positions in corporate, trust and investment management with SunTrust Banks, Inc.

His civic responsibilities include serving as a Trustee of the Robert W. Woodruff Foundation, Camp Younts Foundation, The Jesse Parker Williams Foundation, and as a member of the Rotary Club of Atlanta. He has chaired the Metro Atlanta United Way Campaign and served as a director of Piedmont Healthcare System and a Trustee of Agnes Scott College. He also is a graduate of Leadership Atlanta.

Wood received a bachelor's degree in history from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, and an M.B.A. in finance from Georgia State University.

With 4.4 million customers and more than 43,000 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 also is continually ranked among the top utilities in Fortune's annual World's Most Admired Electric and Gas Utility rankings. Visit our website at www.southerncompany.com.

SOURCE Southern Company