SHREVEPORT, La., Jan. 9, 2020 – As part of a settlement agreement in the recently concluded Arkansas rate review, Southwestern Electric Power Co. (SWEPCO), an American Electric Power (NYSE: AEP) company, has agreed to seek regulatory approval to retire the Dolet Hills Power Plant by the end of 2026.

SWEPCO has committed to make the necessary regulatory filings at least 12 months prior to the retirement date.

Also as part of the settlement agreement, the Sierra Club has agreed to withdraw its pending challenges related to the Dolet Hills Power Plant in Texas and Louisiana.

“With this agreement, we continue to focus on the economic operations of the plant and lignite mine to best serve our customers. This action follows our change to seasonal operations last year as we adjust to electric power market conditions and the challenges of mining the Oxbox lignite reserves,” said Brian Bond, SWEPCO vice president of External Affairs.

“The plant’s environmental performance has been exceptional for decades, operating in full compliance with applicable federal and state regulations protective of human health and the environment,” Bond said.

Dolet Hills is a 650-megawatt (MW) lignite-fueled plant near Mansfield, La.  SWEPCO owns 40% of the plant. Cleco Corp. owns 50% of the plant and operates the facility. Dolet Hills Lignite Co., a subsidiary of SWEPCO, operates the Oxbow Mine to provide fuel for the power plant.

Cleco and SWEPCO in November 2018 announced a transition from year-round to seasonal operations for the plant. With the transition, mining continues year-round but with one dragline instead of three.

The Arkansas Public Service Commission approved the settlement agreement in late December 2019 as part of its overall decision in the SWEPCO rate review.

SWEPCO serves more than 536,300 customers in Arkansas, Louisiana and Texas.

About Southwestern Electric Power Co. (SWEPCO)

SWEPCO, an American Electric Power (AEP: NYSE) company, serves more than 536,300 customers in western Arkansas, northwest and central Louisiana, northeast Texas and the Texas Panhandle. SWEPCO’s headquarters are in Shreveport, La. News releases and other information about SWEPCO can be found at SWEPCO.com. Connect with us at Facebook.com/SWEPCO, Twitter.com/SWEPCOnews, Youtube.com/SWEPCOtv and SWEPCOConnections.com.

About American Electric Power (AEP)

American Electric Power, based in Columbus, Ohio, is focused on building a smarter energy infrastructure and delivering new technologies and custom energy solutions to our customers. AEP’s approximately 18,000 employees operate and maintain the nation’s largest electricity transmission system and more than 219,000 miles of distribution lines to efficiently deliver safe, reliable power to nearly 5.4 million regulated customers in 11 states. AEP also is one of the nation’s largest electricity producers with approximately 32,000 megawatts of diverse generating capacity, including about 5,200 megawatts of renewable energy. 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, AEP Energy Partners, AEP OnSite Partners, and AEP Renewables, which provide innovative competitive energy solutions nationwide. For more information, visit aep.com.