ATLANTA, Aug. 16 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Southern Company Executive Vice President and President, External Affairs, Chris Womack, today announced that Bryan Anderson has been named vice president, governmental affairs.  In this role, Anderson will manage Southern Company's Washington, D.C., office and direct the company's federal political and regulatory activities.  He will assume this new role by mid-September.

"With more than 18 years of experience in the public and governmental affairs arenas, Bryan brings a wealth of knowledge to Southern Company," said Womack. "Moreover, his proven track record of issue management and advocacy before diverse constituencies will be strong assets as we navigate the ever-evolving public policy landscape."

Anderson succeeds John Pemberton, who was named senior vice president and general counsel, Southern Company Operations, in May.

Anderson joins Southern Company from The Coca-Cola Company where he currently serves as vice president, government relations and public affairs.  In this role, he is the company's primary representative to the White House, Congress, federal agencies, trade associations and major coalitions on U.S. public policy issues.  He also oversees strategic planning, budget development and administration for the company's Washington, D.C., office.

Prior to joining The Coca-Cola Company, Anderson served in the law offices of Sumner and Hewes in Atlanta, and O'Connor and Hannan in Washington, D.C.

A native of Georgia, Anderson earned a bachelor of business administration with a concentration in finance from the University of Georgia and a juris doctor from the Walter F. George School of Law at Mercer University in Macon, Ga.  He is a member of the American Bar Association, the State Bar of Georgia and the District of Columbia Bar.

He and his wife, Katy, have three children.

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 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.

SOURCE Southern Company