COLUMBUS, Ohio, April 11, 2001 – AEP Communications, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of American Electric Power (NYSE: AEP), announced the recent appointment of energy industry veteran William A. (Bill) Randle as managing director of Datapult, LP, an energy information, data collection and processing organization.

Datapult products and services deliver meaningful and accurate usage information to help businesses track and manage energy consumption. As managing director, Randle will be responsible for managing all aspects of the organization’s day-to-day operations.

Randle became managing director of the energy information services portfolio for AEP Communications, LLC in 1998. He was responsible for developing the business plan and the successful launch of the Datapult portfolio of products and services. Before moving to AEP Communications, Randle was the director of Measurements and Customer Support Systems within American Electric Power’s Energy Delivery Support group and has more than 21 years of experience in the electric utility industry. Randle has held numerous assignments of increasing responsibility within the AEP organization.

“I am extremely excited about the our team and the opportunity I have to lead Datapult in establishing itself as a leader in the emerging energy information business,” said Randle.

“Datapult was formed from divisions of AEP Communications and C3 Communications following last year’s completion of a merger of their parent companies, American Electric Power and Central and South West Corporation.
According to Randle, the Datapult business was organized into a limited partnership last year to better blend the assets of the two companies. The merger has resulted in the addition of meter data and settlement services from C3 Communications’ utility automation unit.

““We think this new business structure will help increase the organization’s ability to focus energy and resources on the needs of our customers and the marketplace as a whole,” said Randle. “A single identity will help us take advantage of numerous opportunities that exist in the energy information services market allowing us to become one of the nation’s premier providers of those specialized services.”

““Datapult is a valuable part of AEP Communications’ overall portfolio of products and services,” said Peter R. Thomas, vice president of AEP Communications. “However, with the new business structure, Datapult is now positioned to take advantage of opportunities that will more fully meet the needs of our energy information customers. This is a winning proposition for AEP Communications, Datapult, and Datapult’s new and existing clients”.

“Datapult has improved some of its existing products and services and added few new ones. Datapult services include:

“Datapult^SM Data Mining. Provides users with powerful tools to quickly sort through vast amounts of data and identify opportunities, receive notifications of critical events and gain knowledge of facility operations.
Datapult^SM Utility Payment. Focuses on improving bottom line results by reducing costs and simplifying utility accounts payable.

“Datapult^SM Utility Allocation. Enables fair apportioning for shared utilities among multiple tenants with accurate usage monitoring.

“Datapult^SM Utility Audit. Determines if users are being fairly charged for their utility services.

“Datapult^SM Meter Data Management and Settlement. Meter data and settlement services provide energy suppliers revenue quality data to support settlement of energy purchased. Interval meter data is provided for utility and Energy Service Provider (ESP) customers. The same data can also produce the records necessary for ESPs to settle accounts with regulatory authorities.

“Datapult services are available directly through Datapult, LP or through one of Datapult’s Value Added Resellers with whom Datapult has formed strategic business alliances. “This two-prong strategy will allow for greater market penetration while creating superior customer service by providing the services through multiple outlets,” said Randle.

“Datapult is a wholly owned subsidiary of AEP and is organized under AEP Communications. As an energy information, data collection and processing company, Datapult, LP markets a portfolio of products under the Datapult^SM name. Datapult’s portfolio of products and services deliver meaningful, accurate information about energy use to commercial, industrial and energy supply customers throughout North America helping them save time and money by reducing energy, maintenance and administrative costs and assisting them to make energy purchasing decisions. Datapult is headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, with a regional and operations center in Austin, Texas, and a product development center in Roanoke, Va.

“American Electric Power is a multinational energy company based in Columbus, Ohio. AEP owns and operates more than 38,000 megawatts of generating capacity, making it one of America’s largest generators of electricity. The company is also a leading wholesale energy marketer and trader, ranking second in the U.S. in electricity volume. AEP provides retail electricity to more than 9 million customers worldwide and has more than $55 billion in assets, primarily in the U.S. with holdings in select international markets. Wholly owned subsidiaries are involved in power engineering and construction services, energy management and telecommunications.
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“Visit http://www.datapult.com for more information on Datapult.
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