Cousins Properties and J. P. Morgan Investment Announce New Headquarters for Southern Energy, Inc.

ATLANTA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 24, 1999--Cousins Properties Incorporated (NYSE:CUZ), in partnership with a commingled trust fund advised by J.P. Morgan Investment Management Inc., today announced the development of a new 358,000 square foot office building complex, in the Central Perimeter submarket, which will serve as the international headquarters facility for Southern Energy, Inc. Southern Energy is a wholly owned subsidiary of Southern Company (NYSE:SO).

The $64 million project will be developed by Cousins and owned by a joint venture between Cousins and the fund advised by Morgan. The project will include a 12-story Class A office tower with 291,000 square feet; a one-story, 67,000 square foot energy trading center; and an eight-story parking garage. Cooper Carry & Associates of Atlanta is the architect. The project is located on five acres in Dunwoody, the heart of the Central Perimeter submarket, the largest suburban office market in metropolitan Atlanta. The site is bounded by Perimeter Center West and Peachtree Dunwoody Road, and immediately accessible to I-285, GA 400, the Sandy Springs MARTA Station and Abernathy Road. The grounds will contain heavily landscaped pedestrian areas and are surrounded by numerous retail amenities, including shopping, dining and Perimeter Mall.

Southern Energy, which will consolidate existing operations and relocate to the new space from its present location, has leased seven of the 12 stories (lobby through the seventh floor) for a total of 168,000 square feet. The remaining five floors, with approximately 123,000 square feet, will be leased as speculative space. The office tower will also include a health club and cafe. The energy trading center will be styled after the trading floor of the New York Stock Exchange and will house Southern Company Energy Marketing, Southern Energy's trading arm.

Construction has begun on the first phase of the project, which includes the energy trading center and parking facility. Occupancy for the trading center is slated for December 1999 with the office tower scheduled for completion in December 2000.

John L. Murphy, senior vice president of Cousins' Office Division, said, "Southern Company and Cousins Properties both have a long history in Atlanta, and we're pleased to have been selected by Southern Energy to develop their new international headquarters facility. This will be a signature property in a prime location that will easily attract other premier tenants."

Doug Lawrence, vice president of J.P. Morgan Investment Management, commented, "This venture exemplifies J.P. Morgan Investment Management's belief in the strength of Atlanta's dynamic real estate market."

J.P. Morgan Investment Management Inc., a subsidiary of J.P. Morgan & Company, currently manages nearly $316 billion in assets, approximately $12.6 billion of which are managed by the Real Estate Investment Group. J.P. Morgan Investment Management manages over 2.7 million square feet of office space in Metropolitan Atlanta.

Southern Energy develops, builds, owns and operates power production and delivery facilities and provides a broad range of services to utilities and industrial companies around the world. It supplies energy in 10 countries on four continents. Its Southern Company Energy Marketing unit provides energy trading, marketing and financial services and other energy-related commodities, products and services to customers in North America. Southern Company Energy Marketing is the No. 2 marketer of electricity in the United States and one of the nation's 10 largest marketers of natural gas.

Southern Company (NYSE:SO), the largest producer of electricity in the United States, is also the parent firm of Alabama Power, Georgia Power, Gulf Power, Mississippi Power and Savannah Electric.

Atlanta-based Cousins Properties Incorporated has extensive experience in the real estate industry including the development, acquisition, financing, management and leasing of properties. The property types that Cousins actively invests in include office, retail, medical office and land development projects. The Company's portfolio consists of interests in 9.8 million square feet of office space, 3.4 million square feet of retail space and .6 million square feet of medical office space, and over 400 acres of land for future commercial development. Cousins is a fully integrated equity real estate investment trust (REIT) that has been public since 1962 and trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol "CUZ."