Will meet, exceed state voluntary targets for renewable generation sources
 
 
RICHMOND, Va., Jan. 22, 2008 – Appalachian Power, a unit of American Electric Power (NYSE: AEP), plans to meet a substantial percentage of its future generation needs with renewable generation sources, responding to policy and goals set forth in Virginia’s energy plan and statute.
 
In a filing today with the Virginia State Corporation Commission (SCC)—the first made by a Virginia utility under the voluntary renewable portfolio standards (RPS) established by the Virginia General Assembly—Appalachian Power seeks approval of a plan to meet a 12 percent statutory goal for 2022 by increasing the generation of electricity supplied by renewable sources, including hydro and wind.
 
“This is a significant step forward for Appalachian Power and its Virginia customers as the company commits to a broader mix of resources within the generation portfolio we’ll rely on for meeting our service area’s future power needs,” said Dana Waldo, president and chief operating officer.  “The Commonwealth’s energy policy encourages the generation of electricity in ways that do not contribute to greenhouse gas emissions and we’ve put a plan before the Commission that is consistent with that policy and allows us to meet specific goals established by the Legislature.”
 
In 2006, the General Assembly enacted legislation which set objectives for the utilization of alternative resources in the production of electricity and which required development of the Virginia Energy Plan.  That plan was completed in 2007 and, in the same year, changes were made to the Virginia Electric Utility Restructuring Act establishing voluntary renewable generation goals of four percent of base power usage for 2010, ramping up to 12 percent in 2022.
 
The Virginia Energy Plan, authored by the Department of Mines, Minerals and Energy, recommended that Appalachian and other utilities in Virginia meet the statute’s voluntary RPS goals.
 
RPS goals are measured each year against the non-nuclear generated energy sold in 2007 to the utility’s Virginia jurisdictional customers.
Appalachian’s jurisdictional sales to customers totaled 18,560 gigawatthours (GWh) in 2007. Consequently, the company must be given credit for approximately 742 GWh of renewable energy to meet its four-percent goal for 2010.  Combined with existing hydroelectric generation, which has been part of its generation fleet for decades, Appalachian Power has entered into contracts for the purchase of wind-generated power from Indiana and Illinois facilities that will enable it to meet and exceed the initial goal early, in 2009. Wind-generated electricity began flowing to the company and its Virginia customers this month as the result of these contracts.
 
The company’s filing cites its expertise in innovative power generation development and generation diversity and, as required by Virginia law, demonstrates to the Commission that it has a reasonable expectation of achieving the 2022 goal as well as the intermediate steps set by the Legislature.
 
In its resource planning process, the AEP system has incorporated a comprehensive strategy to reduce, avoid, or offset future greenhouse gas emissions.  Achieving this strategy involves a commitment to a diverse portfolio of solutions including efficiency improvements to existing fossil-fueled plants, the construction of improved efficiency and low-emission base load plants, carbon capture and storage projects, reforestation, demand-side and energy efficiency programs and the ownership of or long-term purchases from renewable energy facilities.  In this regard, Appalachian Power has a separate filing before the SCC associated with its proposal to build an Integrated Gasification Combined Cycle (IGCC) generating facility, qualifying as a carbon capture compatible technology.
 
Appalachian Power’s filing will be given a case number by the SCC and all pertinent materials of the case will be posted on its Website. The SCC will establish a schedule for the case which may include public notices, hearings and other actions. The SCC is currently reviewing the need for establishment of rules relative to renewable filings. Appalachian believes its application will aid that process and allow renewable plans to be developed in Virginia as soon as possible.
 
   Appalachian Power provides electricity to 1 million customers in Virginia, West Virginia and Tennessee (as AEP Appalachian Power). It is a unit of American Electric Power, one of the largest electric utilities in the United States, with more than 5 million customers in 11 states. AEP ranks among the nation’s largest generators of electricity, owning more than 38,000 megawatts of generating capacity in the U.S. AEP also owns the nation’s largest electricity transmission system, a nearly 39,000-mile network that includes more 765 kilovolt extra-high voltage transmission lines than all other U.S. transmission systems combined. 

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This report made by AEP and its Registrant Subsidiaries contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Although AEP and each of its Registrant Subsidiaries believe that their expectations are based on reasonable assumptions, any such statements may be influenced by factors that could cause actual outcomes and results to be materially different from those projected. Among the factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements are: electric load and customer growth; weather conditions, including storms; available sources and costs of, and transportation for, fuels and the creditworthiness of fuel suppliers and transporters; availability of generating capacity and the performance of AEP’s generating plants; AEP’s ability to recover regulatory assets and stranded costs in connection with deregulation; AEP’s ability to recover increases in fuel and other energy costs through regulated or competitive electric rates; AEP’s ability to build or acquire generating capacity when needed at acceptable prices and terms and to recover those costs through applicable rate cases or competitive rates; new legislation, litigation and government regulation including requirements for reduced emissions of sulfur, nitrogen, mercury, carbon, soot or particulate matter and other substances; timing and resolution of pending and future rate cases, negotiations and other regulatory decisions (including rate or other recovery for new investments, transmission service and environmental compliance); resolution of litigation (including pending Clean Air Act enforcement actions and disputes arising from the bankruptcy of Enron Corp. and related matters); AEP’s ability to constrain operation and maintenance costs; the economic climate and growth in AEP’s service territory and changes in market demand and demographic patterns; inflationary and interest rate trends; AEP’s ability to develop and execute a strategy based on a view regarding prices of electricity, natural gas and other energy-related commodities; changes in the creditworthiness of the counterparties with whom AEP has contractual arrangements, including participants in the energy trading market; actions of rating agencies, including changes in the ratings of debt; volatility and changes in markets for electricity, natural gas and other energy-related commodities; changes in utility regulation, including the potential for new legislation in Ohio and membership in and integration into regional transmission organizations; accounting pronouncements periodically issued by accounting standard-setting bodies; the performance of AEP’s pension and other postretirement benefit plans; prices for power that AEP generates and sells at wholesale; changes in technology, particularly with respect to new, developing or alternative sources of generation; other risks and unforeseen events, including wars, the effects of terrorism (including increased security costs), embargoes and other catastrophic events.