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Thursday, February 18, 2010

Cooper Lighting Products Recognized in Next Generation Luminaires Solid-State Lighting Design Competition

(BUSINESS WIRE)--Cooper Lighting, a division of Cooper Industries plc (NYSE: CBE) has announced that four of its products have been recognized for excellence by the Next Generation Luminaires™ (NGL) Solid-State Lighting Design Competition. Sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy, the Illuminating Engineering Society of North America, and the International Association of Lighting Designers, the second annual NGL competition was created to recognize and promote excellence in the design of energy-efficient LED commercial lighting luminaires. Cooper Lighting’s four awarded products were chosen as winners in four different categories of lighting for both indoor and outdoor environments, showing diversity of the vast company offering of LED products.

“We invest heavily in product development across all of our portfolio of quality brands and these awards validate our commitment to providing sustainable, energy-efficient LED solutions for our customers.”

The products that have been “recognized,” meaning the products are recommended for specification, include Cooper Lighting’s Halo Stasis LED track lighting luminaires, the Halo LED 900 recessed downlight series, the Invue LED Entri wall-mount luminaires, and the Streetworks OVH LED Cobrahead roadway luminaire.

“We are extremely honored to have our products recognized for superior design, performance and reliability,” says Neil Schrimsher, President, Cooper Lighting. “We invest heavily in product development across all of our portfolio of quality brands and these awards validate our commitment to providing sustainable, energy-efficient LED solutions for our customers.”

Earning praise in the accent lighting category, the Halo Stasis LED luminaire is a track-mounted accent fixture, available in two sizes (Small and Medium), three optical distributions (Spot, Narrow Flood and Flood) and two color temperatures (3000K and 4000K). Providing excellent color quality (85 CRI), the Small luminaire consumes only 8 watts with an equivalent intensity of a 50W PAR halogen lamp and the Medium fixture consumes 18 watts, providing the intensity of the 120W PAR halogen or 39W CMH lamp.

Recognized in the recessed downlighting category, the Halo LED 900 series is a new addition to the Halo LED 6" aperture high lumen downlight offering that delivers in the range of 511-945 lumens (depending on the trim and selected color temperature) yielding smooth beam distribution with excellent cutoff. Designed for new construction (with the LED housing Series H750x) or retrofit applications into compatible incandescent housings (using the Edison screw base adapter included), the Halo LED 900 series offers comparable light output and distribution of a 75W PAR30 or PAR38 halogen lamp, or a 26W compact fluorescent luminaire, while consuming less than 15 watts. In addition, the new Halo LED 900 series offers several models that achieve ENERGY STAR® qualification.

The Invue Entri LED was recognized in the wall-mount area lighting category. The state-of-the-art LED luminaire features architectural appeal in a compact form. Designers are offered vast versatility in function and performance through downward illumination, upward illumination or a combination of both, in addition to energy saving bi-level switching capabilities and egress solutions using LED battery packs. There is a choice of eight optical distributions and two lumen outputs. Entri’s design offers effortless quick-mounting capabilities, toolless access, and sustainable design features that allow field replacement of the LightBAR™ and driver system.

Chosen in the street/roadway lighting fixtures category, the OVH LED area luminaire offers a choice of 15 optical patterns and four lumen outputs and is designed for area, walkway, and roadway applications. The 27"L x 13"W x 7"H housing is heavy‐duty, die‐cast aluminum. The entire LED assembly, individual LightBAR™ optical modules, and the driver can be replaced in the field. No tools are required for access. Cooper also offers this product in the Lumark and Streetworks brand portfolios.

Twelve judges independently evaluated 126 products by assessing their lighted performance and appearance, construction, and photometric data with special attention focused on serviceability/replacement issues. Forty-three commercial LED products were chosen as “recognized” winners and four were honored as “best in class.” The winning products were announced and awarded at a ceremony at the Strategies in Light conference in Santa Clara, California held on February 11, 2010.

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Wednesday, February 17, 2010

Southern Company Receives DOE Support for Nation's First Nuclear Units in 30 Years

/PRNewswire/ -- Southern Company announced Tuesday that the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has offered its subsidiary Georgia Power a conditional commitment for loan guarantees for the construction of the nation's first nuclear power units in more than 30 years, a move designed to help spur a renaissance in America's nuclear industry.

"We are honored by the administration's confidence in our ability to build the nation's first new nuclear power plant in more than three decades," said Southern Company CEO David Ratcliffe, following an event at which President Obama and Secretary of Energy Steven Chu announced the award. "It's an important endorsement in the role nuclear power must play in diversifying our nation's energy mix and helping to curb greenhouse gas emissions."

President Obama and Secretary Chu announced the commitment for the loan guarantees at a news conference held at the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 26 in Lanham, Md. Ratcliffe was joined at the event by Georgia Power CEO Mike Garrett, Southern Company COO Tom Fanning, Southern Nuclear CEO Jim Miller and Southern Company Executive Vice President Chris Womack.

The new units will be located at Plant Vogtle near Waynesboro, Ga., where the company already owns and operates two nuclear units. The conditional commitment is for loan guarantees that would apply to future borrowings related to the construction of Vogtle units 3 and 4.

Total guaranteed borrowings would not exceed 70 percent of the company's eligible projected costs, or approximately $3.4 billion, and are expected to be funded by the Federal Financing Bank. Any guaranteed borrowings would be full recourse to Georgia Power and secured by a first priority lien on the company's 45.7 percent ownership interest in the two new units.

Ratcliffe added that loan guarantees would serve as a catalyst to accelerate the construction of new nuclear plants and other clean energy sources while adding jobs and aiding the economy. The additions of units 3 and 4 are expected to produce approximately 3,500 jobs during construction and an additional 800 permanent jobs once the units begin operation.

Georgia Power has 90 days to accept the conditional commitment, including obtaining any necessary regulatory approvals. The company will work with the DOE to finalize the loan guarantees. Final approval and issuance of the loan guarantees are subject to receipt of the Combined Operating License (COL) from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), completion of final agreements, the receipt of any other required regulatory approvals and satisfaction of other conditions. The company received an early site permit from the NRC for the two additional units in 2009, and preliminary site work has begun.

Along with Georgia Power's portion of the two 1,100-megawatt reactors, the remaining ownership is split among Oglethorpe Power Corporation, the Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia (MEAG Power) and Dalton Utilities. Total cost of the new units is currently projected to be approximately $14 billion. Georgia Power's share is currently projected at approximately $6.1 billion, which includes approximately $1.7 billion of financing costs to be collected during construction.

Units 3 and 4 are expected to begin commercial operation in 2016 and 2017, respectively. Southern Nuclear, a subsidiary of Southern Company, will oversee the construction as well as operate the two new units for Georgia Power and the other owners. Southern Nuclear currently operates Plant Vogtle's two existing nuclear power units as well as Georgia Power's Plant Hatch nuclear facility near Baxley, Ga., and Alabama Power's Plant Farley nuclear facility near Dothan, Ala.

Georgia Power is the largest subsidiary of Southern Company, one of the nation's largest generators of electricity. The company is an investor-owned, tax-paying utility with rates well below the national average. Georgia Power serves 2.3 million customers in all but four of Georgia's 159 counties.

With 4.4 million customers and more than 42,000 megawatts of generating capacity, Atlanta-based Southern Company (NYSE:SO) is the premier energy company serving the Southeast. A leading U.S. producer of electricity, Southern Company owns electric utilities in four states and a growing competitive generation company, as well as fiber optics and wireless communications. Southern Company brands are known for excellent customer service, high reliability and retail electric prices below the national average. Southern Company is consistently listed among the top U.S. electric service providers in customer satisfaction by the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI). Visit our Web site at www.southerncompany.com.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements:

Certain information contained in this release is forward-looking information based on current expectations and plans that involve risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking information includes, among other things, statements concerning the conditional commitment and DOE loan guarantees, estimated cost savings from DOE loan guarantees, and projected costs of construction and in service dates for Vogtle units 3 and 4. Southern Company and Georgia Power caution that there are certain factors that can cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking information that has been provided. The reader is cautioned not to put undue reliance on this forward-looking information, which is not a guarantee of future performance and is subject to a number of uncertainties and other factors, many of which are outside the control of Southern Company and Georgia Power; accordingly, there can be no assurance that such suggested results will be realized. The following factors, in addition to those discussed in the Annual Reports on Form 10-K of Southern Company and Georgia Power for the year ended December 31, 2008, and subsequent securities filings, could cause actual results to differ materially from management expectations as suggested by such forward-looking information: timely receipt of necessary regulatory approvals related to the Plant Vogtle expansion, including Georgia Public Service Commission and Nuclear Regulatory Commission approvals; interest rate fluctuations and financial market conditions, including the credit ratings of Southern Company and Georgia Power; satisfaction of all conditions to the final issuance and approval of DOE loan guarantees, including negotiation of final agreements, continuing due diligence by DOE and receipt of any required regulatory approvals; and the ability to control costs and avoid delays in the construction of Plant Vogtle units 3 and 4, including risks related to shortages and inconsistent quality of equipment, materials and labor, work stoppages, contractor or supplier non-performance under construction or other agreements, adverse weather conditions, unforeseen engineering problems, changes in project design or scope, environmental and geological conditions, and unanticipated cost increases. Southern Company and Georgia Power expressly disclaim any obligation to update any forward-looking information.

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Sunday, February 7, 2010

U.S. Secretary of Energy to Deliver Keynote Address at CERAWeek 2010

Energy Secretary Steven Chu joins industry leaders, government officials and renowned economists scheduled to address the world’s premier energy conference March 8-12 in Houston

U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu will join an impressive list of speakers at CERAWeek 2010, March 8-12 at the Hilton Americas – Houston. Secretary Chu will deliver a keynote address Tuesday, March 9 at 12:30pm CT.

CERAWeek, now in its 29th year, is recognized as a leading forum offering insight into the energy future. Chaired by IHS Cambridge Energy Research Associates (IHS CERA) Chairman and Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Prize, Daniel Yergin, CERAWeek 2010 Energy: Building the New Future will convene an international group of industry, policy and financial leaders—along with leading researchers from IHS CERA—to discuss the central energy challenges and opportunities.

Other Featured Speakers at CERAWeek 2010 include:

Khalid Al-Falih, president and CEO, Saudi Aramco
Hamad Rashid Al-Mohannadi, managing director and CEO, RasGas Company Limited
Nariman Behravesh, chief economist, IHS
Brandon Bethards, CEO, Babcock & Wilcox
Philippe Boisseau, president gas and power, TOTAL
Jean-Francois Cirelli, vice chairman and president, GdF SUEZ
Theodore F. Craver, Jr., chairman, president and CEO, Edison International
Peter Darbee, Chairman, president and chief executive officer, PG&E Corporation
José Sergio Gabrielli de Azevedo, CEO, Petrobras
Andy Inglis, chief executive, exploration and production, BP
Philippe Joubert, executive vice president, Alstom, president of Alstom Power
Andrew Liveris, chairman and chief executive officer, Dow Chemical Company
Helge Lund, president and chief executive officer, Statoil
Tan Sri Hassan Marican, president and chief executive officer, PETRONAS
Alexander Medvedev, deputy chairman and general director of Gazprom Export, Gazprom
Mike Morris, Chairman, president and CEO, American Electric Power Company Inc.
James Mulva, Chairman, president and CEO, ConocoPhilips
Richard Newell, administrator, US Energy Information Administration (EIA)
Rajendra Kumar Pachauri, chairman (Nobel Laureate), Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
Kjell Pederson, CEO, Petoro AS
Ken Rogoff, professor of economics, Harvard University
Paolo Scaroni, CEO, ENI Group
Nobuo Tanaka executive director, International Energy Agency (IEA)
Tom Walters, president gas and power marketing, ExxonMobil
Key CERAWeek 2010 themes include:

Demand: Has the “Great Recession” caused a fundamental shift in energy demand?
Future Investment in the Industry: What will be the short-term and long-term impacts of the economic slowdown on the energy industry?
Economics: What is the future of the global economy?
Future Fuel Mix: How will climate change, the economy, new technologies and new supply impact interfuel competition and technology choice?
Climate Change: How will climate change legislation affect future investment and prices around the globe?
Geopolitics: How will geopolitical forces impact energy prices and investment decisions?
Company Strategy: In the midst of such political and economic uncertainty, which strategies are the most resilient to future shocks?
Game Changers: What innovations will be the game changers in the new energy future? The electric car? Unconventional natural gas?

A complete agenda, speaker updates and registration information are available at www.ceraweek.com

Media Registration:
Members of the media interested in registering for CERAWeek 2010 must first apply for accreditation. Please send your name, organization, phone, email, and organization Web site to ceraweekmedia@ihs.com. Once IHS CERA has confirmed your eligibility, you will receive information for completing your complimentary registration online.

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About IHS CERA (www.ihscera.com)
IHS CERA is a leading advisor to energy companies, consumers, financial institutions, technology providers and governments. IHS CERA (www.ihscera.com) delivers strategic knowledge and independent analysis on energy markets, geopolitics, industry trends, and strategy. IHS CERA is based in Cambridge, Mass., and has offices in Bangkok, Beijing, Calgary, Dubai, Johannesburg, Mexico City, Moscow, Mumbai, Oslo, Paris, Rio de Janeiro, San Francisco, Tokyo and Washington, DC.

About IHS (www.ihs.com)
IHS (NYSE: IHS) is a leading global source of critical information and insight dedicated to providing the most complete and trusted information and expertise. IHS product and service solutions span four areas of information that encompass the most important concerns facing global business today: Energy, Product Lifecycle, Security, and Environment, all supported by Macroeconomics. By focusing on our customers first, IHS enables innovative and successful decision-making for customers ranging from governments and multinational companies to smaller companies and technical professionals in more than 180 countries. IHS has been in business since 1959 and employs about 4,100 people in 28 countries.
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