AEP Releases ESG/Sustainability Report As Part Of Industry Initiative

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Aug 30, 2018, 15:25 ET

COLUMBUS, Ohio, Aug. 30, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- American Electric Power (NYSE: AEP) has released its 2018 Edison Electric Institute (EEI) Environmental, Social, Governance and Sustainability (ESG/Sustainability) Report, as part of an industry effort to provide investors with more uniform and consistent sustainability data and information.

"As the demand for ESG disclosure continues to grow among investors, so does the need to provide accurate and consistent data that is relevant for AEP and our industry," said Brian X. Tierney, AEP executive vice president and chief financial officer. "AEP has led our industry in sustainability reporting, and we recently released our 12th annual Corporate Accountability Report, as well as new sustainability goals. EEI's initiative to develop both a quantitative and qualitative report provides a mechanism for us to share and evaluate our sustainability efforts and supports our commitment to being transparent and inclusive."

AEP's 2018 EEI ESG/Sustainability Report highlights the company's emission reductions and clean energy strategy which is focused on modernizing the power grid, expanding renewable energy resources and delivering cost-effective, reliable energy to its customers.

AEP already has cut its carbon dioxide emissions by more than 57 percent from 2000 emission levels, and the company has established a clean energy strategy with a goal to achieve an 80 percent reduction in carbon dioxide levels from its fleet of power plants by 2050. AEP expects to achieve future carbon dioxide emission reductions through a variety of actions including investments in renewable generation and advanced technologies; investment in transmission and distribution systems to enhance efficiency; increased use of natural gas generation; and expanded demand response and energy efficiency programs.

Over the past two years, AEP participated in an EEI-led stakeholder working group comprised of electric companies and financial industry specialists in asset management, ESG/sustainability, investment banking, and buy-side and sell-side analysts to develop industry-focused and investor-driven ESG/sustainability reporting practices. The effort was intended to encourage voluntary reporting of ESG/sustainability information in both quantitative and qualitative formats and is the first and only industry-focused and investor-driven ESG reporting framework.

The EEI ESG/Sustainability Report template provides information in a measurable and consistent format for investors and customers to accurately assess long-term ESG/sustainability progress. Within the quantitative section, companies report sector-specific information, including data on a company's portfolio, emissions, capital expenditures and resources. The use of these universal metrics provides comparable data. The qualitative section provides an opportunity for companies to share additional information about their ESG/sustainability governance and strategy.

AEP's 2018 EEI ESG/Sustainability Report is available at http://aep.com/investors/docs/AEP2018EEIESG-SustainabilityReport.pdf.

More information on EEI's ESG/Sustainability reporting initiative is available at http://www.eei.org/issuesandpolicy/finance/Pages/ESG-Sustainability.aspx.

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 more than 17,000 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 4,300 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 and east Texas). AEP also owns AEP Energy, AEP Energy Partners, AEP OnSite Partners and AEP Renewables, which provide innovative competitive energy solutions nationwide.

SOURCE American Electric Power