Cash Starved Southern Sells Asset, Vogtle Next

Cash-Starved Southern Sells Florida Assets to NextEra

NextEra Energy on May 21 said it would acquire several assets from Southern Co., including Southern’s ownership interest in two natural gas-fired power plants in Florida, in a deal valued at about $6.5 billion.

Southern in a statement Monday said the sale would help the company reduce debt, which has dogged Southern as its subsidiary Georgia Power continues construction of Units 3 and 4 at the Vogtle nuclear plant in Georgia. The expansion at Vogtle is years behind schedule and billions of dollars over budget.

Southern CEO Tom Fanning earlier this month told company investors that the utility needed to raise cash to reduce debt, pay for the new Vogtle reactors, and boost the company’s returns. Southern’s share price on average is down more than 10% in 2018. The company laid out the details of the sale and presented a plan for its use of the equity proceeds over the next five years in a conference call Monday morning. Southern in a statement Monday said, “Proceeds from these transactions are intended to be used to reduce debt and improve Southern Company’s balance sheet.”...