Introduction (Policies)

3 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2014

Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]

Depreciation

Depreciation

Beginning in 2014, Southern Power changed the method of depreciation for its property, plant, and equipment from composite depreciation to component depreciation. As a result, certain generation assets are depreciated on a units-of-production basis to better match outage and maintenance costs to the usage of, and revenues from, these assets. The difference in depreciation expense under this method was not material in the first quarter 2014 and is not expected to have a material impact on the financial statements of Southern Company or Southern Power in future periods.