Feb 20 (Reuters) - U.S. utility Southern Co ( SO )

narrowly missed Wall Street expectations for fourth-quarter

profit on Thursday, hurt by higher operating costs and interest

expenses.

Shares of the company fell 1.1% in premarket trading.

Interest rates in the U.S. have been elevated for more

than two years, which has made it more expensive for utilities

to invest in the construction and maintenance of critical

infrastructure such as electrical grids.

Southern Co's ( SO ) interest costs for the October-December

quarter rose to $693 million from $634 million last year.

Its total operating expenses rose 9% to $5.28 billion in the

fourth quarter, with operating and maintenance costs climbing

14.6% to $1.99 billion.

The utility company serves nearly 9 million customers across

six states - Alabama, Georgia, Illinois, Mississippi, Tennessee

and Virginia.

The Atlanta, Georgia-based company's net income for the

October-December quarter fell 37.5% to $534 million, or 49 cents

per share.

Southern Co ( SO ) posted an adjusted profit of 50 cents per share

for the quarter, compared with analyst estimates of 51 cents per

share, according to data compiled by LSEG.