Darling Named President of AEP River Operations

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Aug 25, 2011, 10:41 ET

COLUMBUS, Ohio, Aug. 25, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- American Electric Power (NYSE: AEP) has named Keith Darling president of AEP River Operations LLC.

Darling, 60, will oversee all managerial and operating activities related to AEP River Operations, including sales, planning and budgeting, accounting, business development, logistics, operations and maintenance. He replaces Mark Knoy, who left the company.

"Keith's river operations experience is both broad and deep, and he has a unique understanding of how our river operations fit with our broader corporate strategy," said Tim Light, senior vice president – Fuels, Emissions & Logistics. "Keith has demonstrated outstanding leadership skills and is focused on both operations and safety excellence."

Darling has served as managing director of boat operations for AEP River Operations since 2002. He joined AEP in 1975, holding positions of increasing responsibility in human resources and labor relations in the company's fuel supply organization. Darling earned a bachelor's degree from West Virginia University and a master's degree from Ohio University, both in economics.

AEP River Operations includes a fleet of 3,275 barges and 94 towboats, a full-service shipyard and six barge repair and cleaning facilities. Headquartered in Chesterfield, Mo., AEP River Operations is one of the largest dry-bulk barge companies on the inland waterways, transporting 77 million tons of commodities each year.

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.