ATLANTA, Oct. 16, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Southern Company
has been selected as a finalist for the Corporate Social
Responsibility Award – Diversified Program at the 21st
annual S&P Global Platts Global Energy Awards. The 2019
finalists were announced by program host S&P Global Platts, the
global provider of energy and commodities information and spot
market benchmarks.
The Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Award emphasizes the
convergence of profitability and company values. The award
recognizes the organization that best demonstrates leadership,
commitment to sustained action and real-world impacts from across
its business. The judges are seeking a high-performing organization
that has evidenced its positive influence on surrounding
communities, promotes teamwork toward sustainable, long-term
impacts and encourages active employee participation beyond
financial contributions.
Southern Company and our subsidiaries recognize the
responsibility that comes with our privilege to develop energy
solutions and are steadfast in our commitment to our customers,
neighbors and communities.
We were one of the first energy companies to publicly set goals
to reduce carbon emissions. In 2018, we established an intermediate
goal of a 50% reduction in carbon emissions from 2007 levels by
2030 and a long-term goal of low- to no-carbon operations by 2050.
As of the end of 2018, the Southern Company system has reduced
greenhouse gas emissions more than 35% as compared to 2007 levels.
Since 2010, Southern Company and its subsidiaries have invested
$20 billion in developing low-carbon
and carbon-free energy resources.
In 2018, corporate and foundation giving by Southern Company and
its subsidiaries totaled $63.6
million. Also, employees across the Southern Company system
raised $2.1 million for numerous
organizations that serve our local communities. Since 2003, we have
facilitated the investment of more than $14.2 million in 306 grants that have restored or
enhanced 1.7 million acres of forests, rivers, coastal areas and
wetlands.
Established in 1999 and often described as "the Oscars of the
energy industry," the S&P Global Platts Global Energy Awards
highlight corporate and individual innovation, leadership and
superior performance in 21 categories spanning the entire energy
complex. Hundreds of energy industry representatives are expected
to attend the 2019 Global Energy Awards black-tie dinner on
December 12 in New York City.
About Southern Company
Southern Company (NYSE: SO) is
a leading energy company serving 9 million customers through its
subsidiaries. The company provides clean, safe, reliable and
affordable energy through electric operating companies in three
states, natural gas distribution companies in four states, a
competitive generation company serving wholesale customers across
America, a leading distributed energy infrastructure company, a
fiber optics network and telecommunications services. Southern
Company brands are known for excellent customer service, high
reliability and affordable prices below the national average. For
more than a century, we have been building the future of energy and
developing the full portfolio of energy resources, including
carbon-free nuclear, advanced carbon capture technologies, natural
gas, renewables, energy efficiency and storage technology. Through
an industry-leading commitment to innovation and a low-carbon
future, Southern Company and its subsidiaries develop the
customized energy solutions our customers and communities require
to drive growth and prosperity. Our uncompromising values ensure we
put the needs of those we serve at the center of everything we do
and govern our business to the benefit of our world. Our corporate
culture and hiring practices have been recognized nationally by the
U.S. Department of Defense, G.I. Jobs magazine, DiversityInc, Black
Enterprise, Forbes and the Women's Choice Award. To learn more,
visit www.southerncompany.com.
About S&P Global Platts
At S&P Global Platts,
we provide the insights; you make better informed trading and
business decisions with confidence. We're the leading independent
provider of information and benchmark prices for the commodities
and energy markets. Customers in over 150 countries look to our
expertise in news, pricing and analytics to deliver greater
transparency and efficiency to markets. S&P Global Platts
coverage includes oil and gas, power, petrochemicals, metals,
agriculture and shipping. S&P Global Platts is a division of
S&P Global, which provides
essential intelligence for individuals, companies and governments
to make decisions with confidence. For more information, visit
www.platts.com.
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 emission
reduction goals. 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 and its
subsidiaries; accordingly, there can be no assurance that such
suggested results will be realized. The following factors, in
addition to those discussed in Southern Company's and its
subsidiaries' Annual Reports on Form 10‐K for the year ended
December 31, 2018, and subsequent
securities filings, could cause actual results to differ materially
from management expectations as suggested by such forward‐looking
information: the impact of recent and future federal and state
regulatory changes, including tax and environmental laws and
regulations 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; variations in demand
for electricity and natural gas; the ability to complete necessary
or desirable pipeline expansion or infrastructure projects, limits
on pipeline capacity, and operational interruptions to natural gas
distribution and transmission activities; transmission constraints;
the ability to control costs and avoid cost and schedule overruns
during the development, construction, and operation of facilities,
including Plant Vogtle Units 3 and 4, which includes components
based on new technology that only recently began initial operation
in the global nuclear industry at this scale, and including changes
in labor costs, availability and productivity; challenges with
management of contractors, subcontractors or vendors; adverse
weather conditions; shortages, delays increased costs or
inconsistent quality of equipment, materials, and labor; contractor
or supplier delay; nonperformance under construction, operating, or
other agreements; operational readiness, including specialized
operator training and required site safety programs; engineering or
design problems; design and other licensing-based compliance
matters, including the timely submittal by Southern Nuclear of the
Inspections, Tests, Analyses, and Acceptance Criteria documentation
for each unit and the related review and approvals by the U.S.
Nuclear Regulatory Commission ("NRC") necessary to support NRC
authorization to load fuel; challenges with start-up activities,
including major equipment failure, system integration or regional
transmission upgrades; and/or operational performance; the ability
to construct facilities in accordance with the requirements of
permits and licenses (including satisfaction of NRC requirements),
to satisfy any environmental performance standards and the
requirements of tax credits and other incentives, and to integrate
facilities into the Southern Company system upon completion of
construction; state and federal rate regulations and the impact of
pending and future rate cases and negotiations, including rate
actions relating to return on equity, equity ratios and fuel and
other cost recovery mechanisms; legal proceedings and regulatory
approvals and actions related to construction projects, such as
Plant Vogtle Units 3 and 4 and pipeline projects, including Public
Service Commission approvals and Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission and NRC actions; under certain specified circumstances,
a decision by holders of more than 10% of the ownership interests
of Plant Vogtle Units 3 and 4 not to proceed with construction, and
the ability of other Vogtle owners to tender a portion of their
ownership interests to Georgia Power following certain construction
cost increases; and catastrophic events such as fires, earthquakes,
explosions, floods, tornadoes, hurricanes and other storms,
droughts, pandemic health events or other similar occurrences.
Southern Company and its subsidiaries expressly disclaim any
obligation to update any forward‐looking information.
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SOURCE Southern Company