Company: SOJE
Filing Date: 2025-04-11
Form Type: DEF 14A
Source: 0000092122-25-000036
Chunk: 99

Company: SOUTHERN CO
Filing Date: 2025-04-11
Form: DEF 14A
Chunk 99
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arbonization path. 3

2. If Southern does not prioritize decarbonization, some of the new load it is forecasting may not materialize. Many of Southern’s customers driving the increased energy demand, including Meta, Alphabet, Digital Realty, and Equinix, have aggressive renewable energy targets and are locating data centers where their renewable energy needs can be met. 4

3. Leading energy experts are advising investors that electricity demand can be met without new fossil fuels, and that underinvestment in renewables is consequential. 5

#### Southern Company2025 Proxy Statement85

#### Stockholder Proposals
Due to these concerns, investors are seeking assurance that Southern’s investments in new fossil fuel capacity are grounded in sound market projections and aligned with the most current data on renewable and fossil fuel developments. Without this transparency, investors cannot accurately evaluate key aspects of Southern's strategy including its likelihood of overshooting climate targets, its ability to meet customer demand for renewable energy, and whether Southern is leveraging technological advancements or overestimating the competitiveness of legacy technologies.

Peer utilities Duke Indiana, Dominion South Carolina, Duke Carolinas, and AES Indiana provide comparatively more transparency, with the latter disclosing projected cost, capacity, and lifespan assumptions for solar, wind, batteries, and methane gas through 6 Southern’s failure to disclose energy resource plans. Further, companies failing to model and disclose these assumptions risk falling behind competitors in innovation, compliance, and customer retention.

RESOLVED: To allow informed decision making, shareholders request that Southern Company disclose the primary assumptions underpinning its decision to increase reliance on fossil fuel-based energy production rather than renewables. This disclosure should omit proprietary or competitively sensitive information.

1 https://s27.q4cdn.com/273397814/files/doc_financials/2024/q3/v4/SO-2024-Q3-Earnings-Call-Final.pdf ,p.10

2 https://www.utilitydive.com/news/georgia-power-approval-plant-yates-irp/713404/;
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-11-12/southern-ceo-says-extending-coal-among-options-to-meet-ai-demand

3 https://utilitytransitionhub.rmi.org/climate-alignment/

4 https://sustainability.atmeta.com/blog/2024/10/14/our-approach-to-clean-and-renewable-energy/;
https://sustainability.google/progress/energy/;
https://www.digitalrealty.com/about/esg/clean-energy; https://sustainability