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Exhibit 99(c)
[LETTERHEAD OF SALOMON SMITH BARNEY INC.]
Board of Directors
Florida Progress Corporation
One Progress Plaza
St. Petersburg, Florida 33701
Members of the Board:
We hereby consent to the inclusion of our opinion letter attached as Annex B
to, and to the reference thereto under the caption "SUMMARY--Opinion of the
Financial Advisor to Florida Progress" and "THE SHARE EXCHANGE--Opinion of
the Financial Advisor to Florida Progress" in, the Joint Proxy
Statement/Prospectus of Florida Progress Corporation ("Florida Progress") and
Carolina Power & Light Company ("CP&L") relating to the proposed share
exchange involving Florida Progress and CP&L, which Joint Proxy
Statement/Prospectus is part of the Registration Statement on Form S-4 of
Florida Progress and CP&L. By giving such consent, we do not thereby admit
that we are experts with respect to any part of such Registration Statement
within the meaning of the term "expert" as used in, or that we come within
the category of persons whose consent is required under, the Securities Act
of 1933, as amended, or the rules and regulations of the Securities and
Exchange Commission promulgated thereunder.
By /s/ Salomon Smith Barney Inc.
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SALOMON SMITH BARNEY INC.
New York, New York
July 5, 2000
