AEP RECOGNIZED AS A TOP UTILITY IN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

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10/13/2022 - 03:36 PM

COLUMBUS, Ohio, Oct. 13, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- American Electric Power (Nasdaq: AEP) has been named one of the nation's Top Utilities in Economic Development by Site Selection magazine.

Site Selection annually evaluates utilities' corporate project investment and job creation on a cumulative and per-capita basis. AEP has been recognized on the list 10 of the past 11 years. The company was one of 20 utilities selected.

"A key component of AEP's strategic vision is building stronger, more vibrant communities by fueling economic growth in our service territory," said Timothy Wells, vice president of Sales, Economic & Business Development, AEP. "In 2021, AEP helped attract $5.15 billion in capital investment across the 11 states we serve, nearly double that of the previous year. We're pleased to be recognized for our continued efforts to develop strong partnerships with our customers and stakeholders, while generating jobs, tax revenue and opportunities for the communities we serve."

In 2021, AEP's economic and business development team helped attract more than 15,460 new direct jobs in the company's service territory, a 42% increase from 2020. Highlights of AEP's work in 2021 include:

Launched a free "Energizing Economic Development" e-learning course designed to help community leaders have a greater impact on economic development. Three of AEP's operating companies have rolled out the training, which has 450 registered users.
Created an electric vehicle charging station site tool using geographic information system capabilities to better identify sites suitable for EV fleets and other energy-intensive developments.
Increased its portfolio of development-ready Quality Sites. CANPACK, an aluminum and packaging company based in Poland, is building its second U.S. plant in Muncie, Indiana on a property from the AEP Quality Sites portfolio. The investment will create 345 jobs by the end of 2023. This is Indiana Michigan Power's largest development project in 10 years.
Helped facilitate Nucor and Intel's investments in West Virginia and Ohio, respectively. Nucor, North America's largest steel company, will build a new plant in West Virginia, creating 800 full-time permanent manufacturing jobs. The site will be one of the most advanced, lowest emission sheet mills in the world. Intel plans to invest more than $20 billion to construct two new semiconductor chip manufacturing operations in New Albany, Ohio. With the project will come more than 10,000 jobs over the course of construction and an entirely new industry for central Ohio.

Learn more about AEP's economic development strategy.

American Electric Power, based in Columbus, Ohio, is powering a cleaner, brighter energy future for its customers and communities. AEP's approximately 16,700 employees operate and maintain the nation's largest electricity transmission system and more than 224,000 miles of distribution lines to safely deliver reliable and affordable power to 5.5 million regulated customers in 11 states. AEP also is one of the nation's largest electricity producers with approximately 31,000 megawatts of diverse generating capacity, including more than 7,100 megawatts of renewable energy. The company's plans include growing its renewable generation portfolio to approximately 50% of total capacity by 2030. AEP is on track to reach an 80% reduction in carbon dioxide emissions from 2005 levels by 2030 and has committed to achieving net zero by 2045. AEP is recognized consistently for its focus on sustainability, community engagement, and diversity, equity and inclusion. AEP's family of companies includes utilities AEP Ohio, AEP Texas, Appalachian Power (in Virginia and West Virginia), AEP Appalachian Power (in Tennessee), Indiana Michigan Power, Kentucky Power, Public Service Company of Oklahoma, and Southwestern Electric Power Company (in Arkansas, Louisiana, east Texas and the Texas Panhandle). AEP also owns AEP Energy, which provides innovative competitive energy solutions nationwide. For more information, visit aep.com.