Nov. 6, 2014

FORT WAYNE, Ind. – Indiana Michigan Power, an operating unit of American Electric Power (NYSE: AEP),  is moving forward with Powering Up Central: City of Fort Wayne, a key transmission project in north Fort Wayne to enhance reliability and help serve the city’s economic development.

Powering Up Central is the next phase of the Powering Up Northeast Indiana transmission program that I&M announced in February. Like other elements of the overall program, Powering Up Central will help ensure the availability of plentiful, reliable power at a comparatively low cost, which is crucial for business location and expansion.

The key component of Powering Up Central is rebuilding an existing transmission line from Spy Run Avenue near State Boulevard to a substation located off North Clinton Street near I-469, a distance of about 6.5 miles. The existing 34.5 kiloVolt (kV) transmission line will be replaced by a more efficient 138 kV line capable of providing more reliable service. I&M will replace the aging steel lattice towers dating back decades with more aesthetically appealing single-pole structures.

I&M has notified landowners with existing easements about the project, including local government agencies that oversee property in and near the corridor of the transmission line. The majority of the new towers and equipment are expected to be built along or near the existing line, and I&M will need to acquire additional right of way.

I&M representatives will be available to answer questions and offer additional information about the project from 5 to 7 p.m., Nov. 18 in the Student Life Center Gymnasium at Ivy Tech Community College’s North Campus, 3702 Dean Drive in Fort Wayne.

Additional information about Powering Up Northeast Indiana is available at

www.indianamichiganpower.com/poweringup

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Indiana Michigan Power (I&M) is headquartered in Fort Wayne, and its 2,500 employees serve more than 582,000 customers. It operates 3,595 MW of coal-fired generation in Indiana, 2,110 MW of nuclear generation in Michigan and 22 MW of hydro generation in both states.  The company also provides its customers 250 MW of purchased wind generation.

I&M is a unit of American Electric Power (NYSE: AEP), 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 40,000-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.