Mississippi Power Co., a wholly owned subsidiary of electric
utility firm
Southern Company
(
SO
), has closed Plant Eaton - the first power generating unit built
by Mississippi Power in March 1945, at a time when electricity
was primarily used for lights, radios and refrigeration. The
plant was built on the Leaf River, in Mississippi, and was named
after Barney E. Eaton Sr. - the company's first president.
Eaton is a three unit coal-fired power plant, each of which
produces 22.5 megawatts (MW) of electricity making the total
generation capacity of 67.5 MW. The plant has been serving
customers reliably for nearly 70 long years.
Per management, initially when the unit began operations,
Mississippi Power served roughly 40,000 customers. But the
electricity consumption pattern has undergone a sea change since
the 1940s, with the increase in the company's customers by more
than four times to around 186,000. In order to keep pace with the
ever-increasing demand for electricity, management has decided to
replace the Eaton facility by the Kemper plant. The new plant is
now under construction in Kemper Country energy facility and is
likely to start its operation by May, 2014.
Mississippi Power - one of the four electric utilities that make
up Southern Company - is engaged in providing retail and
wholesale electric services to approximately 200,000 customers in
23 counties from the Gulf Coast to Meridian. It owns or has major
ownership interests in six generating facilities with net
dependable generating capacity of 3,166 MW.
Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, Southern Company is one of the
largest generators of electricity in the nation, along with the
likes of
Exelon Corporation
(
EXC
) and
Duke Energy Corporation
(
DUK
) - which serves both regulated and competitive markets across
the Southeastern U.S.
Weather conditions impair Southern Company's operating results,
which vary on a seasonal and quarterly basis. Electric power
supply is usually a seasonal business. In several regions of the
country, demand for power peaks during the summer months, along
with market prices, however, in other areas power demand reaches
its zenith during winter. Consequently, the future operating
results of Southern Company may fluctuate substantially on a
seasonal basis.
Southern Company currently carries a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell),
implying that it is expected to underperform the broader U.S.
equity market over the next one to three months.
In the electric utility space
Ameren Corporation
(
AEE
) displays better fundamentals and currently holds a Zacks Rank
#1 (Strong buy).
AMEREN CORP (AEE): Free Stock Analysis Report
DUKE ENERGY CP (DUK): Free Stock Analysis
Report
EXELON CORP (EXC): Free Stock Analysis Report
SOUTHN COMPANY (SO): Free Stock Analysis
Report
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