3.12.2008 - 05:37pm ET

(CSRwire) COLUMBUS, Ohio, March 12 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- American Electric Power Co. (NYSE: AEP) announced today that proxy materials for its 2008 Annual Meeting of Shareholders are available through the Internet under the Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) new Notice and Access rule.

These documents are AEP's 2007 summary annual report, proxy statement for the 2008 Annual Meeting and Appendix A to the proxy, which includes the company's 2007 financial statements. The materials have been filed with the SEC and can be viewed on AEP's website at www.AEP.com/investors/annrep.

The Notice and Access rule allows companies to furnish proxy materials to shareholders through the Internet as an alternative to traditional delivery of printed materials. By adopting this new provision, AEP has reduced the number of printed copies of its annual meeting materials this year by 87 percent.

"This approach to distributing annual meeting documents aligns perfectly with our philosophy of using resources prudently and protecting the environment," said Dennis Welch, AEP executive vice president - Environment, Safety & Health and Facilities. "By encouraging electronic access and making hard copies available only to those shareholders who specifically request them, we are demonstrating our commitment to sustainable business practices."

AEP shareholders who wish to obtain hard copies of the company's proxy materials at no charge may do so by following the instructions provided on the company's website or in the "Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials" that was mailed today to shareholders who held shares on the record date of Feb. 27, 2008.

AEP's 2008 Annual Meeting of Shareholders will be Tuesday, April 22, at 9:30 a.m. EDT at the Hotel Roanoke & Conference Center, 110 Shenandoah Ave., Roanoke, Va. A live webcast of the meeting, featuring both audio and video, will be accessible at www.AEP.com/go/webcasts.

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 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. 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.

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