Utility company "labor sharing"??

Factual Questions
1

Because of the recent winter weather in Charlotte that left almost 2 million people without power, Georgia Power and Alabama Power sent hundreds of workers to North Carolina to assist Duke Power with the repairs.

This sort of thing happens every time there’s a catastrophe. Living in Georgia, I often see Georgia Power help out in NC when there’s ice and snow or FLA when there’s a hurricane. My question is: how does all of the work?

I assume that the workers are getting paid overtime for this; who’s paying them? Will Georgia Power present Duke Power a bill for all the overtime they paid their workers helping North Carolinians get power back? Or is there some sort of “gentlemen’s agreement” or legal requirement that utility companies help each other out?

Thanks for helping satisfy my curiousity!!

2

Umm, Georgia Power is one unit of the Southern Company. The Southern Company is THE power company for a very large chunk of the SE US. Keeping the unit identities sep. is useful for various political and PR reasons. But it acts as one large monopolistic power company for all practical purposes, enjoying the “benefits” that a monopoly of its size can get away with.

3

Just to point out, Southern Company is composed of Georga, Alabama, and Mississippi Power, Savannah Power and Gulf State Utilities (Florida panhandle). North Carolina and southern Florida are certainly outside of their operational area. Duke Power is not affiliated with Southern Company.