Southern Company and environmentalist Ted Turner have formed a strategic partnership to develop renewable energy projects in the United States.
David Ratcliffe, CEO of Southern Company, said that this partnership combines their common goal to search and develop new renewable energy projects. Ratcliffe commented that the company was of the view that in the country’s energy mix, renewable energy should play an important role and Southern Company would explore opportunities to expand its renewable energy portfolio where possible. This strategic alliance demonstrates the company’s commitment to renewable energy.
Ted Turner said that he was delighted to be partnering with Southern Company to explore the potential for renewable energy. He added that the Southern Company's expertise in the development of power projects, construction and operations and its experience in customer relationship will help to make this a strong collaboration.
The partnership, initially, will be concentrating on investing and developing in large-scale photovoltaic projects in the U.S. Southwest. This is the most promising region for solar development, since the demand is more and solar sources are efficient. The goal of the partnership in the region is to commercialize the technology further and make solar power more cost competitive.