COLUMBUS, Ohio, March 21, 2012 – American Electric Power (NYSE: AEP) has named Pablo A. Vegas president and chief operating officer of AEP Ohio, effective May 1. Vegas currently is vice president and chief information officer for the company.

          Vegas, 38, will have responsibility for all aspects of AEP’s electric service to customers in Ohio. He will report to Robert P. Powers, executive vice president and chief operating officer.

           Vegas will succeed Joseph Hamrock, who is leaving for a position with NiSource.

           “Pablo’s experience leading utility operations in Texas, coupled with his diverse business background, will serve us well as we transition our business operations in Ohio from a vertically integrated electric utility to a hybrid regulatory model with the generation service eventually open to full competition,” said Nicholas K. Akins, AEP president and chief executive officer. “Pablo did an excellent job during his tenure as our Texas president, focusing on delivering strong regulatory outcomes and operational improvements in our distribution business.”

            “Joe has been an exceptional leader for AEP in a variety of positions over his 26 years with the company,” Akins said. “He led AEP with considerable skill as president and chief operating officer of AEP Ohio over the past four years. We will miss his leadership and wish him well in his new role at NiSource.”

           Vegas has served as vice president and chief information officer since July 2010, responsible for development and support of AEP’s software applications and operation of the company’s information technology infrastructure. From 2008 to 2010, Vegas was president and chief operating officer of AEP Texas. Prior to this, Vegas served as director of strategy planning for AEP. He joined the company in 2005 and held several leadership positions in Information Technology before his role in Finance. Before joining AEP, Vegas held senior leadership positions with IBM, PricewaterhouseCoopers and Andersen Consulting. He received a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Michigan.

           Replacing Vegas on an interim basis as the chief information officer is Michael A. Rozsa, Managing Director – IT Business Applications. Rozsa joined the company in 1997 and has held a number of positions with increasing responsibility in the Information Technology department.

          American Electric Power is one of the largest electric utilities in the United States, delivering electricity to more than 5 million customers in 11 states. AEP ranks among the nation’s largest generators of electricity, owning nearly 39,000 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. AEP’s transmission system directly or indirectly serves about 10 percent of the electricity demand in the Eastern Interconnection, the interconnected transmission system that covers 38 eastern and central U.S. states and eastern Canada, and approximately 11 percent of the electricity demand in ERCOT, the transmission system that covers much of Texas. AEP’s utility units operate as 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 and east Texas). AEP’s headquarters are in Columbus, Ohio.