Cap-and-trade legislation is barreling down the energy pipeline. Who will be the winners and losers? Big oil companies like ExxonMobil (NYSE: XOM) will likely face high carbon bills.

But Exxon and the other oil majors have an out -- the ability to pass these costs on to consumers. Motley Fool Income Investor advisor James Early says electric utilities are a different bag. Those in less friendly regulatory regimes -- in the northern U.S. and Midwest -- with coal-fired power may suffer, while power companies in the good ol' South may fare better thanks to kind regulators. Southern Company (NYSE: SO) and Duke Energy (NYSE: DUK) are two southern utilities worth getting fired up over. Watch the video below.