{"id":20107,"date":"2018-05-07T13:02:48","date_gmt":"2018-05-07T17:02:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.l-a-k-e.org\/blog\/?p=20107"},"modified":"2018-05-07T13:02:48","modified_gmt":"2018-05-07T17:02:48","slug":"southern-company-stockholder-meeting-2018-05-23","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.l-a-k-e.org\/blog\/2018\/05\/southern-company-stockholder-meeting-2018-05-23.html","title":{"rendered":"Southern Company Stockholder Meeting 2018-05-23"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>\nThis year the Southern Company<br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.southerncompanyannualmeeting.com\/media\/2473\/2017-annual-report.pdf\">annual report<\/a> says increased energy revenues were &#8220;primarily due<br \/>\nto increases in renewable energy sales&#8221;, yet Southern Power is selling off<br \/>\na third interest in its solar facilities.<br \/>\nWhy? To pay off debt from its failed Big Bet on Plant Vogtle nukes,<br \/>\nand its new Big Bet on stranded assets in natural gas pipelines.<br \/>\nI don&#8217;t think the future lies that way, Tom Fanning, abandoning solar power<br \/>\nand getting in bed with Sabal Trail.<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left:3em;text-indent:-3em\">\n<strong>When:<\/strong><br \/>\n10AM Wednesday, May 23, 2018<br \/>\n<br \/>\n9AM breakfast<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left:3em;text-indent:-3em\">\n<strong>Where:<\/strong><br \/>\nThe Lodge Conference Center at Callaway Gardens,<br \/>\n<br \/>\n4500 Southern Pine Drive, Pine Mountain, Georgia 31822<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left:3em;text-indent:-3em\">\n<strong>What:<\/strong><br \/>\nSouthern Company <a href=\"https:\/\/www.southerncompanyannualmeeting.com\">Annual Stockholder Meeting<\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:center;font-size:80%;font-style:italic\">\n<a title=\"Facilities in Operation or Development as of March 20, 2018, Annual Report\" href=\"http:\/\/www.l-a-k-e.org\/blog\/?attachment_id=20104\"><br \/>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" style=\"border:none\" id=\"20106\" width=\"600\" height=\"782\" alt=\"Facilities in Operation or Development as of March 20, 2018, Annual Report\" src=\"http:\/\/www.l-a-k-e.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/71ba21cc7e3bda0f184edb930eba4c6a.jpg\"><\/a><br \/>\n<br \/>\nFacilities in Operation or Development as of<br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.southerncompanyannualmeeting.com\/media\/2473\/2017-annual-report.pdf\"><br \/>\nMarch 20, 2018, Annual Report<\/a>\n<\/p>\n<p>\nWhy would Southern Company sell off the assets that generated the most increase in revenue? On page 46:<!--more--><\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\nIn 2017, wholesale revenues increased $500 million, or 26.0%, as<br \/>\ncompared to the prior year due to a $433 million increase in energy<br \/>\nrevenues and a $67 million increase in capacity revenues, primarily<br \/>\nat Southern Power. The increase in energy revenues was primarily due<br \/>\nto increases in renewable energy sales arising from new solar and<br \/>\nwind facilities and non-PPA revenues from short-term sales. The<br \/>\nincrease in capacity revenues was primarily due to a PPA related to<br \/>\nnew natural gas facilities and additional customer capacity<br \/>\nrequirements.\n<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>\nOn page 8, SO brags about a 1 megawatt solar facility at the new Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\nGeorgia Power&#8217;s solar installation at MercedesBenz Stadium helps the<br \/>\nfacility achieve its goal of 1.6 million kilowatt hours of energy<br \/>\nper year from on-site solar generation.\n<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>\nWhy aim so low?<\/p>\n<p>\nAnd what about this microgrid material on page 17:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>\n<H4><br \/>\nLocally-sourced power to supplement the grid<br \/>\n<\/H4><\/p>\n<p>\nReynolds Landing is powered both by the traditional electric grid,<br \/>\nas well as a community-scale power system called a<br \/>\n&ldquo;microgrid,&rdquo; which is composed of solar panels, battery<br \/>\nstorage and back-up generation. With the capacity to generate more<br \/>\nthan 600,000 kilowatt hours of energy annually, the microgrid can<br \/>\npotentially power the entire community, if needed.\n<\/p>\n<p>\nOn Atlanta&#8217;s Upper West Side, Georgia Power is creating a similar<br \/>\ntownhome community, Altus at the Quarter, where power from the grid<br \/>\nis supplemented by rooftop solar installations and in-home battery<br \/>\nstorage.\n<\/p>\n<p>\nEach of these real-world research and development projects provides<br \/>\ninsight into the effectiveness of emerging energy technologies and<br \/>\nhow high-performance homes will be built in the future.\n<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>\nOh, no, backpedaling: Southern Company is back into &#8220;research&#8221;<br \/>\nabout &#8220;the future&#8221; when solar power is here right now.<\/p>\n<p>\nEven worse, on page 36:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<ul>\n<li>\npotential business strategies, including acquisitions or<br \/>\ndispositions of assets or businesses, including the proposed<br \/>\ndisposition by a wholly-owned subsidiary of Southern Company Gas of<br \/>\nElizabethtown Gas and Elkton Gas and the potential sale of a 33%<br \/>\nequity interest in substantially all of Southern Power&#8217;s solar<br \/>\nassets, which cannot be assured to be completed or beneficial to The<br \/>\nSouthern Company or its subsidiaries;\n<\/ul>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>\nOK, I won&#8217;t miss that NJ Pivotal LNG natural gas liquefaction facility,<br \/>\nbut what&#8217;s this about selling off solar assets?<br \/>\nIt&#8217;s unlikely many of them can&#8217;t be completed, so what&#8217;s this<br \/>\nabout not &#8220;beneficial&#8221;?<\/p>\n<p>\nOn page 45, SO finally gets to its point:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\nEnergy sales from solar and wind PPAs do not have a capacity charge<br \/>\nand customers either purchase the energy output of a dedicated<br \/>\nrenewable facility through an energy charge or through a fixed price<br \/>\nrelated to the energy. As a result, the Company&#8217;s ability to recover<br \/>\nfixed and variable operations and maintenance expenses is dependent<br \/>\nupon the level of energy generated from these facilities, which can<br \/>\nbe impacted by weather conditions, equipment performance,<br \/>\ntransmission constraints, and other factors.\n<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>\nSO can&#8217;t charge for fuel for solar power, and hasn&#8217;t invested in<br \/>\nbatteries or long-distance load balancing, so it doesn&#8217;t like<br \/>\nthe revenue model for solar power.<br \/>\nThis is the usual utility complaint.<\/p>\n<p>\nLast year you may recall SO CEO Tom Fanning told me he was decreasing<br \/>\ninvestment in solar power.<br \/>\nBeyond that, they are doing this:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\nIn addition, Southern Power is pursuing the sale of a 33% equity<br \/>\ninterest in a newly-formed holding company that owns substantially<br \/>\nall of Southern Power&#8217;s solar assets, which, if successful, is<br \/>\nexpected to close in the middle of 2018.\n<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>\nAre there any other reasons? Well, yes. Jim Polson and Brian Eckhouse,<br \/>\nBloomberg, 1 November 2017,<br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.bloomberg.com\/news\/articles\/2017-11-01\/southern-to-sell-solar-assets-nuclear-settlement-to-raise-cash\"><br \/>\nSouthern to Sell Solar Assets, Nuclear Settlement to Raise Cash<\/a>,<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\nSouthern Co. is shopping a $3.7 billion nuclear settlement and part<br \/>\nof its solar-generation business to raise cash after recent<br \/>\nacquisitions nearly doubled its debt.\n<\/p>\n<p>\nPotential asset sales announced Wednesday follow a earlier decision<br \/>\nto offer two natural-gas utilities for $1.4 billion. The<br \/>\nAtlanta-based utility owner has held talks with potential buyers<br \/>\nover the settlement from Toshiba Corp. for failing to complete the<br \/>\nexpansion of the Vogtle nuclear plant in Georgia, Chief Executive<br \/>\nOfficer Tom Fanning said by phone Wednesday.\n<\/p>\n<p>\nSouthern needs to raise cash as it anticipates about $1.4 billion in<br \/>\nadded costs to complete Vogtle, a project that has seen costs soar<br \/>\nto more than $25 billion. The company is also bailing out its<br \/>\nMississippi Power unit after regulators said they wouldn&#8217;t allow it<br \/>\nto recover costs for a failed coal-gasification power project from<br \/>\nratepayers, and has debt remaining from expanding into the gas<br \/>\npipeline business.\n<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>\nPenny-wise, pound-foolish.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\nSouthern Power owns 27 U.S. solar projects, 19 of which are already<br \/>\nco-owned with third parties. The projects span much of the southern<br \/>\npart of the country, from California to North Carolina.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n&ldquo;There&#8217;s a tremendous amount of demand,&rdquo; for the<br \/>\nportfolio, Nathan Serota, a New York-based analyst at Bloomberg New<br \/>\nEnergy Finance, said in an interview.\n<\/p>\n<p>\nInstitutional investors and pension funds are hungry for<br \/>\nrenewable-energy projects, emerging this year as leading buyers.<br \/>\nSolar farms typically benefit from utility contracts that ensure<br \/>\nconsistent revenue streams, which dovetail with the long-dated<br \/>\nliabilities that insurers and pension fund managers accrue.\n<\/p>\n<p>\nFor Southern, a sale would come after a major buying spree of solar<br \/>\nand wind farms across the U.S., including a 120-megawatt Texas solar<br \/>\nproject from First Solar Inc. last year. In parts of 2015 and 2016,<br \/>\nit was among the most prolific buyers of such assets.\n<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>\nIndeed. But those purchases didn&#8217;t run up enough debt to demand<br \/>\nthis kind of triage.<br \/>\nWhat did?<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\nNet debt at Southern has almost doubled since 2015 after a raft of<br \/>\ndeals including the $8 billion takeover of gas distributor AGL<br \/>\nResources Inc. and the purchase of a 50 percent stake in Kinder<br \/>\nMorgan Inc.&#8217;s Southern Natural Gas pipeline system for $1.5 billion.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n&ldquo;This is relatively uncommon in the U.S., but it&#8217;s a common<br \/>\nstrategy in Europe to monetize their assets to raise money to<br \/>\nredeploy into future projects and to continue to build their<br \/>\npipeline,&rdquo; Serota said.\n<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>\nSo Southern Company is mortgaging its real future in sun and wind power<br \/>\nto double-down on its failed nuclear Big Bet at Plant Vogtle,<br \/>\nand its new Big Bet in natural gas pipeline stranded assets.<\/p>\n<p>\nWell, that explains this map on page 2:<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:center;font-size:80%;font-style:italic\">\n<a title=\"System Footprint, Annual Report\" href=\"http:\/\/www.l-a-k-e.org\/blog\/?attachment_id=20101\"><br \/>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" style=\"border:none\" id=\"20103\" width=\"600\" height=\"860\" alt=\"System Footprint, Annual Report\" src=\"http:\/\/www.l-a-k-e.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/eaf10e5764c677590be92e8308a324ed.jpg\"><\/a><br \/>\n<br \/>\nSystem Footprint, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.southerncompanyannualmeeting.com\/media\/2473\/2017-annual-report.pdf\">Southern Company Annual Report 2018<\/a>.\n<\/p>\n<p>\nThose yellow dots in California, Nevada, and New Mexico are presumably the solar facilities SO is selling off.<\/p>\n<p>\nIn favor of all those pipelines and pipeline projects in the east.<br \/>\nWhat&#8217;s that up in Pennsylvania?<br \/>\nPennEast Pipeline, Breaking News, apparently from 2014,<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/penneastpipeline.com\/breaking-news\/\"><br \/>\nSpectra Energy Partners Becomes Newest Member in PennEast Pipeline Project<\/a>,<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>\nSpectra Energy Partners becomes the sixth member of the PennEast Pipeline Company, LLC. It joins AGL Resources&#8230;.\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>\nAGL Resources is what Southern Company bought and renamed Southern Company Gas.<br \/>\nPennEast is a feeder pipeline for Transco and Sabal Trail.<br \/>\nThe Federal Energy Regulatory Commission <a href=\"http:\/\/wwals.net\/2018\/01\/20\/same-excuse-ferc-rubberstamps-penneast-like-sabal-trail-2018-01-19\/\">(FERC) rubberstamped PennEast this January<\/a><br \/>\njust like it (again) <a href=\"http:\/\/wwals.net\/blog\/2018\/03\/16\/ferc-rubberstamps-reinstatement-of-sabal-trail-permit-with-two-dissents-2018-03-14\/\">rubberstamped Sabal Trail this March<\/a>, both because hey, they&#8217;ve got customers, nevermind property rights, water, or greenhouse gases.<\/p>\n<p>\nThis is the real answer to my question last year to Tom Fanning,<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/www.l-a-k-e.org\/blog\/2017\/06\/video-solar-panels-heck-yeah-tom-fanning-ceo-at-so-stockholder-meeting-2017-05-24.html#jsq\"><br \/>\nWill you lead to sun and wind power?<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\nUnfortunately the answer is: no, he is leading SO into the past.<\/p>\n<p>\n -jsq\n<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:center;font-style:italic\">Investigative reporting costs money, for open records requests, copying, web hosting, gasoline, and cameras, and with sufficient funds we can pay students to do further research.  You can <a href=\"http:\/\/www.l-a-k-e.org\/blog\/donate\">donate to LAKE today<\/a>!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>This year the Southern Company annual report says increased energy revenues were &#8220;primarily due to increases in renewable energy sales&#8221;, yet Southern Power is selling off a third interest in its solar facilities. Why? To pay off debt from its failed Big Bet on Plant Vogtle nukes, and its new Big Bet on stranded assets [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14,18,6124,104,24,36],"tags":[9598,10291,10293,8701,8708,8702,12,7,3866,562,6076,8010,108,8009,10289,10290,10292,6339,6],"class_list":["post-20107","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-economy","category-georgia-power","category-natural-gas-2","category-nuclear","category-solar","category-wind","tag-agl-resources","tag-facilities","tag-footprint","tag-georgia","tag-georgia-power","tag-lake","tag-lowndes-area-knowledge-exchange","tag-lowndes-county","tag-meeting","tag-natural-gas","tag-pipeline","tag-sonat","tag-southern-company","tag-southern-natural-gas","tag-southern-power","tag-stockholder","tag-system","tag-tom-fanning","tag-valdosta"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.l-a-k-e.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20107","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.l-a-k-e.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.l-a-k-e.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.l-a-k-e.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.l-a-k-e.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20107"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"http:\/\/www.l-a-k-e.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20107\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":20110,"href":"http:\/\/www.l-a-k-e.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20107\/revisions\/20110"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.l-a-k-e.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20107"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.l-a-k-e.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=20107"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.l-a-k-e.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=20107"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}