What the changes say
- New risks emphasize uncertain tax changes, broader GHG policies affecting natural gas and electrification, and nuclear operations at Georgia Power and Alabama Power.
- Environmental disclosures now highlight significant future compliance spending and EPA implementation, while recovery of costs remains uncertain.
- Climate, supply-chain, weather, and financing language adds fossil-fuel publicity, tariffs, extreme temperatures, earnings impacts, and demand-growth funding needs.
What changed since the prior 10-K
New
- New
FUTURE EARNINGS POTENTIAL – "Income Tax Matters – Federal Tax Legislation" in Item 7 herein for additional information
Future tax-law changes, regulatory interpretations, enforcement, litigation, or penalties could materially increase costs or change the Southern Company system’s operating environment.
- New
operating companies operate. This process relies on information and assumptions from internal and external sources, which may or may not be accurate in predicting future outcomes
New GHG policies could require faster decarbonization, restrict natural-gas use, alter electricity and gas demand, and create uncertain cost-recovery outcomes.
- NewOPERATIONAL RISKS
Table of Contents Index to Financial Statements
Safety, environmental, cyber, physical-attack, regulatory, and financial problems at eight nuclear units could cause fines, closures, or uninsured losses; Georgia Power owns interests in six.
Dropped
- Dropped
however, that all such costs will be recovered. The Registrants expect future compliance expenditures will continue to be significant
- Dropped
gas could likewise result in increased costs to the Southern Company system and affect the demand for natural gas as well as the prices charged to customers and the competitive position of natural gas
- DroppedOPERATIONAL RISKS
interconnect facilities to transmission grids; and increased financing costs as a result of changes in interest rates or as a result of project delays
EPA and state air, greenhouse-gas, water, and coal-ash rules could require significant compliance spending.
Reworded
- 87% rewritten
The Southern Company system's costs of compliance with environmental laws and regulations and satisfying related AROs are significant
The risk now expressly says future environmental compliance spending will remain significant and identifies EPA implementation of Clean Air and Clean Water Act rules.
Was: The Southern Company system's costs of compliance with environmental laws and satisfying related AROs are significant
- 82% rewritten
The Southern Company system may be exposed to regulatory and financial risks related to the impact of GHG legislation, regulation, and emission reduction goals
The disclosure adds adverse publicity from conflicting public views about fossil-fuel use or supply.
- 67% rewrittenOPERATIONAL RISKS
The financial performance of Southern Company and its subsidiaries may be adversely affected if the subsidiaries are unable to successfully operate their facilities or perform certain corporate functions
The operating-risk examples now include counterparty failures and joint-venture arrangements, expanding beyond joint-owner limitations.
- 57% rewrittenOPERATIONAL RISKS
Supply chain disruptions, inflation, elevated interest rates, trade policies (including tariffs and other trade measures), and other economic factors could negatively impact operations
Supply-chain risks now specifically include U.S. and foreign trade policies, tariffs, and other trade measures, alongside broader international conflicts.
Was: Supply chain disruptions, inflation, elevated interest rates, tariffs, and other economic factors could negatively impact operations
- 52% rewritten
UTILITY REGULATORY, LEGISLATIVE, AND LITIGATION RISKS
The risk adds that reduced, eliminated, or expired renewable-energy incentives, or restrictions on renewable projects, could reduce demand and harm the business.
- 41% rewrittenFINANCIAL, ECONOMIC, AND MARKET RISKS
Uncertainty in demand for energy can result in lower earnings or higher costs
No substantive change is visible in the provided text; the demand-planning risk remains focused on uncertain loads from economic conditions, usage, efficiency, and technology adoption.
- 35% rewrittenFINANCIAL, ECONOMIC, AND MARKET RISKS
Electric power and natural gas supply are generally seasonal businesses. The Subsidiary Registrants have historically sold less power and natural gas when weather conditions are milder
Weather damage is now stated to affect revenue and/or earnings, and the examples add extreme temperatures to hurricanes and wildfires.
- 28% rewrittenFINANCIAL, ECONOMIC, AND MARKET RISKS
The businesses of the Registrants and Nicor Gas are dependent on their ability to successfully access capital through capital markets and financial institutions
Capital-market access is now tied to projected electric-demand capital expenditures and unexpected commodity-cost or severe-storm restoration needs.
- 25% rewrittenOPERATIONAL RISKS
The Subsidiary Registrants are subject to workforce factors that could affect operations
- 25% rewrittenFINANCIAL, ECONOMIC, AND MARKET RISKS
Failure to comply with debt covenants or conditions could adversely affect the ability of the Registrants, SEGCO, Southern Company Gas Capital, or Nicor Gas to execute future borrowings
- 24% rewrittenFINANCIAL, ECONOMIC, AND MARKET RISKS
Customers could also voluntarily reduce their consumption of energy in response to decreases in their disposable income, elimination of government energy assistance programs, government shutdowns, increases in energy prices, or individual conservation efforts
Was: Customers could also voluntarily reduce their consumption of energy in response to decreases in their disposable income, increases in energy prices, or individual conservation efforts
All 33 risk factors
Headings as the filing states them, in filing order.
Other
- 01UTILITY REGULATORY, LEGISLATIVE, AND LITIGATION RISKS52% rewritten
- 02FUTURE EARNINGS POTENTIAL – "Income Tax Matters – Federal Tax Legislation" in Item 7 herein for additional informationnew
- 03The Southern Company system's costs of compliance with environmental laws and regulations and satisfying related AROs are significant87% rewritten
- 04The Southern Company system may be exposed to regulatory and financial risks related to the impact of GHG legislation, regulation, and emission reduction goals82% rewritten
- 05operating companies operate. This process relies on information and assumptions from internal and external sources, which may or may not be accurate in predicting future outcomesnew
OPERATIONAL RISKS
- 06The financial performance of Southern Company and its subsidiaries may be adversely affected if the subsidiaries are unable to successfully operate their facilities or perform certain corporate functions67% rewritten
- 07Table of Contents Index to Financial Statementsnew
- 08Damages, decommissioning, or other costs could exceed the amount of decommissioning trusts or insurance coverage, including statutorily required nuclear incident insurance
- 09Generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity and transportation and storage of natural gas involve risks that may result in accidents and other operating risks and costs and that may present potential exposures in excess of insurance coverage
- 10Physical attacks, both threatened and actual, could impact the ability of the Subsidiary Registrants to operate
- 11An information security incident, including a cybersecurity breach, or the failure of, or inability to remotely access, one or more key technology systems, networks, or processes could impact the ability of the Registrants to operate
- 12The Southern Company system may not be able to obtain adequate natural gas, fuel supplies, and other resources required to operate the traditional electric operating companies' and Southern Power's electric generating plants or serve Southern Company Gas' natural gas customers
- 13Increased competition from other companies that supply energy or generation and storage technologies and changes in customer demand for energy could negatively impact Southern Company and its subsidiaries
- 14Customers and stakeholders are increasingly focused on the Registrants' ability to meet rapidly changing demands for new and varied products, services, and offerings. Additionally, the risk of global climate change continues to shape customers' and stakeholders' sustainability goals and energy needs
- 15It is also possible that rapid advances in power generation technology could reduce the value of the current electric generating facilities owned by the traditional electric operating companies and Southern Power. Changes in technology could also alter the channels through which electric customers buy or utilize power
- 16The Subsidiary Registrants are subject to workforce factors that could affect operations25% rewritten
- 17Supply chain disruptions, inflation, elevated interest rates, trade policies (including tariffs and other trade measures), and other economic factors could negatively impact operations57% rewritten
- 18Southern Company Gas' significant investment in pipeline development projects involves financial and execution risks
FINANCIAL, ECONOMIC, AND MARKET RISKS
- 19The electric generation and energy marketing operations of the traditional electric operating companies and Southern Power and the natural gas operations of Southern Company Gas are subject to changes in energy prices and fuel costs
- 20The Registrants are subject to risks associated with a changing economic environment, customer behaviors, including increased energy conservation, and adoption patterns of technologies by customers
- 21Customers could also voluntarily reduce their consumption of energy in response to decreases in their disposable income, elimination of government energy assistance programs, government shutdowns, increases in energy prices, or individual conservation efforts24% rewritten
- 22Electric power and natural gas supply are generally seasonal businesses. The Subsidiary Registrants have historically sold less power and natural gas when weather conditions are milder35% rewritten
- 23Acquisitions, dispositions, or other strategic ventures or investments may not result in anticipated benefits and may present risks, including risks not originally contemplated
- 24Southern Company and Southern Company Gas are holding companies and Southern Power owns many of its assets indirectly through subsidiaries. Each of these companies is dependent on cash flows from their respective subsidiaries to meet their ongoing and future financial obligations
- 25A downgrade in the credit ratings of any of the Registrants, Southern Company Gas Capital, or Nicor Gas could negatively affect their ability to access capital at reasonable costs and/or could require posting of collateral or replacing certain indebtedness
- 26Uncertainty in demand for energy can result in lower earnings or higher costs41% rewritten
- 27The businesses of the Registrants and Nicor Gas are dependent on their ability to successfully access capital through capital markets and financial institutions28% rewritten
- 28Failure to comply with debt covenants or conditions could adversely affect the ability of the Registrants, SEGCO, Southern Company Gas Capital, or Nicor Gas to execute future borrowings25% rewritten
- 29Volatility in the securities markets, interest rates, and other factors could substantially increase defined benefit pension and other postretirement plan costs and affect the funding available for nuclear decommissioning
- 30Shareholder activism could cause Southern Company to incur significant expense, hinder execution of Southern Company's business strategy, and impact Southern Company's stock price
- 31The Registrants are subject to risks associated with their ability to obtain adequate insurance at acceptable costs
- 32The use of derivative contracts by Southern Company and its subsidiaries in the normal course of business could result in financial losses that negatively impact the net income of the Registrants or in reported net income volatility
- 33Future impairments of goodwill or long-lived assets could have a material adverse effect on the Registrants' results of operations
Other Georgia Power 10-Ks
- 2025 10-K risk factors
33 risks. Environmental compliance, climate policy, and nuclear obligations dominate the risk disclosures.
Filed Feb 20, 2025
About this page
Item 1A of the 10-K on EDGAR was split into its risk factors and, where the company's previous 10-K is on file, each heading was matched to last year's and the text compared word for word. The headings are the filing's own. The one-line readings and the overview were written by a language model from the text of the new, dropped, and rewritten risks; they refer to risks by position and cannot misquote a heading.