Southern Company’s Chairman, President and CEO Tom Fanning Interviewed by Advisor Access
November 19 2019 - 6:00AM
Southern Company (NYSE: SO) is an energy company
providing electric and gas service to nine million customers across
the United States through its subsidiaries. The company is focused
on making, moving, and selling reliable, low-cost energy solutions
from traditional and renewable power sources, as well as providing
superior customer service. Recognizing the rapid evolution of the
energy sector, including new technologies, customer preferences,
and environmental, social, and governance initiatives, Southern
Company is working to advance its solar, wind, and nuclear
holdings, develop microgrids, and significantly reduce its system's
greenhouse gas emissions.
- Serving 9 million customers through 7 subsidiaries across the
U.S.
- 288 consecutive quarterly dividends equal to or greater than
those in the previous quarter (more than 70 years)
- Approximately 44,000 megawatt generating capacity
- Developing microgrids and deploying energy storage systems
throughout the U.S.
- Subsidiary Southern Power provides 11,300 MW of wholesale
solar, wind, fuel cell and natural gas generation in 13 states
- Subsidiary PowerSecure provides distributed infrastructure
technologies in 32 states
Click here to view the Southern Company Corporate
Fact Sheet
Click here to view the Third Quarter Earnings Call
Presentation
Advisor Access spoke with Southern Company’s chairman, president
and CEO, Tom Fanning, about the company’s
business model, culture, and plans for future growth.
Advisor Access: Let’s start with the basics.
Please describe Southern Company’s core business and strategy.
Tom Fanning: Southern Company is a leading
energy company serving nine million customers through our
subsidiaries. Clean, safe, reliable, and affordable are the
benchmarks we use to evaluate our value proposition to customers.
We do this through electric operating companies in three states,
natural gas distribution companies in four states, a competitive
generation company serving wholesale customers across America, and
a leading distributed energy infrastructure company…
AA: A tagline for the Company is “building the
future of energy.” What does this mean for Southern Company
and why is it important?
TF: Innovation represents an enormous advantage
for Southern Company. Southern Company remains the only company in
America, in our industry, that does proprietary, robust research
and development. In fact, this year was a milestone year for
Southern Company’s research and development organization as we
celebrated our fiftieth year of leading industry innovation.
Our efforts have a simple goal: increase the value of energy to
our customers…
AA: Southern Company has a very robust capital
investment plan over the next several years. Could you talk a
little bit about what you are investing in?
TF: While the Vogtle Unit 3 & 4 nuclear
construction project is very important for Southern Company, and
certainly garners a great deal of interest from investors, it only
represents about 10% of our $38 billion capital investment plan
over the next five years. This capital investment plan, which
supports our 4–6% earnings per share growth objective, is primarily
comprised of regulated investment, with 95% of investments being
made through our seven state-regulated electric and gas
subsidiaries…
AA: Southern Company has paid a remarkable 288
consecutive quarterly dividends that have been equal to or greater
than those in the previous quarter. Can you talk a bit about why
the dividend is so important to Southern Company?
TF: This year represents our eighteenth
consecutive annual dividend increase, and for seventy-one
years—dating back to 1948—Southern Company has paid a dividend that
was equal to or greater than that of the previous year. We have
never decreased our dividend. This is a record we are very proud
of…
AA: The energy mix of your portfolio has
evolved dramatically over the last decade. Can you describe what
has changed and why?
TF: Our generation portfolio has seen a drastic
transformation over the past decade as our fleet has transitioned
from coal to natural gas and renewable generation. Year-to-date
2019, generation from coal represents 22% of our total generating
mix—down from nearly 70% of our generating mix in 2007…
AA: Southern Company’s subsidiaries
consistently rank among the top of the industry with regards to
customer satisfaction. Why is customer satisfaction so important to
Southern Company?
TF: Our pledge to put the
customer at the center of everything we do is the key to our
success…
AA: Is there anything else you’d like investors
to know about Southern Company?
TF: The energy sector is rapidly evolving,
driven by innovation, technology advancements, customer
preferences, resiliency efforts, and environmental, social, and
governance initiatives. With evolution comes tremendous
opportunity, and Southern Company, with our customer-centric
business model, is well poised to provide continued value to our
customers and communities in this changing landscape…
Read the complete answers to these questions and the full
interview with SO HERE.
About Advisor Access:
Advisor-Access LLC brings compelling investment ideas to
investors in the form of in-depth interviews with company
management and the latest fact sheets and corporate
presentations.
DISCLOSURE: Southern Company has paid Advisor Access a fee to
distribute this email. Southern Company had final approval of
the content and is wholly responsible for the validity of the
statements and opinions.
CONTACT INFORMATION
Advisor Access
Rick Baggelaar
rick@advisor-access.com
Southern (NYSE:SO)
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