South Jersey Industries, Inc.

NEWS RELEASE

1 South Jersey Plaza, Folsom, New Jersey 08037
Tel. (609) 561-9000 Fax (609) 561-8225 TDD ONLY 1-800-547-9085

SJI ANNOUNCES RECORD FIRST QUARTER EARNINGS

    FOLSOM, N.J. -- South Jersey Industries, Inc. (NYSE: SJI) today announced record earnings from continuing operations of $19.1 million or $1.69 per share for the first quarter of 2000 compared with $17.9 million or $1.66 per share in 1999. Earnings per share including discontinued operations totaled $1.68 in the first quarter of 2000 compared with $1.66 in the first quarter of 1999.

    While 93 percent of the quarter's earnings stemmed from South Jersey Gas Company, the increase in SJI's quarterly earnings resulted from activities within its energy marketing subsidiary, South Jersey Energy Company. South Jersey Energy contributed $1.4 million to SJI's earnings in the first quarter of 2000 -- up significantly over 1999's first quarter earnings of $0.2 million. Primary factors contributing to South Jersey Energy's improved contribution to SJI's earnings were:

• Increased retail natural gas sales to residential customers due to robust growth in its residential customer base. South Jersey Energy's customer base increased from 12,000 residential gas customers at March 31, 1999 to over 40,000 customers as of March 31, 2000.
• Efficient management of its wholesale natural gas supply portfolio generated additional profits from interstate natural gas sales during peak demand periods.
• New profits from sales of the company's real-time, air monitoring system. This breakthrough technology is used by companies during environmental site cleanup and remediation. This business began operating in 1999's second quarter.

"Our results for the first quarter are consistent with our strategic plan to deliver record earnings for our shareholders year after year," said SJI's Chairman, President & CEO Charles Biscieglia. "We expect South Jersey Energy's contribution to represent 15 percent of SJI's bottom-line within the next three to five years. We see the first quarter of 2000 as evidence South Jersey Energy in on-track to meet our expectations."

In spite of weather that was 7.3 percent warmer than normal and 1.1 percent warmer than first quarter 1999, South Jersey Gas Company, SJI's natural gas utility subsidiary, contributed $17.6 million of earnings for the first quarter of 2000. Customer growth in the first quarter of 2000 exceeded management's expectations as it was 15 percent above first quarter 1999.

South Jersey Industries, Inc. is an energy services holding company for South Jersey Gas Company and South Jersey Energy Company. To learn more about SJI and its subsidiaries please visit http://www.sjindustries.com on the Internet.

This release contains forward-looking statements about SJI's financial performance. The statements are made in good faith and deemed reasonable at the date of this release. Actual results may vary and SJI encourages you to conduct your own research before making any investment decisions including a review of SJI's Annual Report to Shareholders and Form 10K for a complete discussion of risks and/or uncertainties that may cause actual results to vary.

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