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On Jan. 5, Southern Company Board of Directors announced the appointment of Chris Womack as president and a member of the board effective March 31.

The board also appointed Womack, a Greenville native, CEO of the utility effective immediately following the conclusion of its 2023 annual meeting of stockholders, simultaneously increasing the board’s size from 13 to 14 in connection with Womack’s election.

“The Board has been actively engaged in succession planning for the past several years, and after consideration of a number of candidates, we unanimously selected Chris as our new Chief Executive Officer and president,” said David J. Grain, Southern Company’s lead independent director in a recent press release. “Chris’ proven leadership, alignment with our values and ability to deliver strong results makes him a terrific choice to lead Southern Company.”

Womack, 64, worked as president of Georgia Power beginning in 2020 and assumed the roles of chairman and CEO in 2021.

Womack joined the Southern Company in 1988, and has served the utility and its subsidiaries as executive vice president and president of external affairs as well as executive vice president of external affairs at Georgia Power and senior vice president and senior production officer of Southern Company Generation.

“Chris’ leadership, vision and integrity during his career with Southern Company have uniquely prepared him to guide Southern Company into a new era,” said Thomas Fanning, Southern Company’s current chairman of the board, CEO and president. “With our recent progress at Plant Vogtle and continued conversion of our operations towards net zero emissions, I believe that now is an ideal time to transition to new leadership. 

“I have confidence that Chris will continue our progress and deliver on Southern Company’s commitment to providing clean, safe, reliable and affordable energy and customized solutions to customers across the United States. I look forward to working closely with Chris over the next five months as he assumes this new role and to focusing on an effective transition in my new position as Executive Chairman of the Board of Directors.”

Womack served as legislative aide for former Congressman Leon Panetta and staff director for the Subcommittee on Personnel and Police for the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on House Administration prior to joining Southern Company.

He earned a bachelor’s degree from Western Michigan University and a master’s degree from The American University before completing the Stanford Executive Program in 2001.

“It is an important time in our industry as the energy landscape continues to rapidly evolve and customers’ needs continue to change, and Southern Company is at the forefront of that evolution,” Womack said. “We’re building the future of energy, and I’m excited to continue playing a role in this new capacity. 

“It is an honor to lead teams working in states across the country that are wholeheartedly dedicated to innovating and delivering both world class customer service and reliability to our customers. We’ve got a lot of important work ahead of us.”

Effective immediately, the board named Jeff Peoples, 63, chairman of the board, CEO, and president of Alabama Power.

The Board of Directors also announced other executive appointments effective March 31:

Kimberly Green, 56, has been named chair of the board, CEO, and president of Georgia Power;

James Kerr II, 58 was named chairman of board, CEO and president of Southern Company Gas;

Peter Sena, III, 59, has been named president of Southern Nuclear and remains Chief Nuclear Officer; and

Stephen Kuczynski remains chairman and CEO of Southern Nuclear.