EXHIBIT 23(b)



                         INDEPENDENT AUDITORS' CONSENT



The Board of Directors
Ambac Assurance Corporation:

We consent to the incorporation by reference in the Registration Statement on
Form S-3 of Alabama Gas Corporation (the "Registrant") of our report dated
January 22, 2001 on the consolidated financial statements of Ambac Assurance
Corporation and subsidiaries as of December 31, 2000 and 1999, and for each of
the years in the three-year period ended December 31, 2000, which report appears
in the Annual Report on Form 10-K of Ambac Financial Group, Inc. which was filed
with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 28, 2001 and to the
reference to our firm under the heading "Experts" in the Registration Statement.



                                      /s/ KPMG LLP



New York, New York
August 16, 2001