A.E. Power Chief Says Company Will Be Exonerated


Substation Relay Protection Training

Our customized live online or in‑person group training can be delivered to your staff at your location.

  • Live Online
  • 12 hours Instructor-led
  • Group Training Available
Regular Price:
$699
Coupon Price:
$599
Reserve Your Seat Today
American Electric Power's top executive expressed confidence yesterday that the company would emerge unscathed from investigations of the energy-trading industry.

Responding to a shareholder's question at AEP's annual meeting, Chairman and Chief Executive E. Linn Draper Jr. said that the Securities and Exchange Commission had asked for "a lot'' of information about AEP's trading activities.

"We believe our activities were open and aboveboard, and we think they (the SEC) will come to the same conclusion,'' Draper said.

Columbus-based AEP also has acknowledged receiving subpoenas or information requests from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the Justice Department.

Those agencies have been investigating the trading industry since Enron's collapse in December 2001. The investigations have resulted in millions of dollars in fines against other trading companies and several criminal indictments.

AEP was one of the nation's largest electricity and natural-gas traders when it said in October that it would exit trading markets where it doesn't own power plants or gas pipelines.

The announcement came a day after it said it fired five natural-gas traders who had provided false prices to a trade publication that publishes a gas-price index.

Draper said yesterday that pressure from corporate debt-ratings agencies and analysts and a plunging stock price had more to do with the decision to get out of energy trading than the actions of the five traders.

"Even though we were making money, we reluctantly decided that it was better for the stock price to scale back those activities,'' he said.

AEP's shares, which hit $48.06 in April 2002, closed at $17.69 the day the trader firings were announced. Shares closed yesterday at $24.94.

AEP lost $571 million last year, compared with profits of nearly $1 billion in 2001.

Draper told shareholders that AEP will look for more ways to cut expenses, continue to scale back energy trading and sell assets to pay down debt.

Related News

Heathrow Airport Power Outage: Vulnerabilities Flagged Days Before Disruption

Heathrow Airport Power Outage 2025 disrupted operations with mass flight cancellations and diversions after a…
View more

Blizzard and Extreme Cold Hit Calgary and Alberta

Calgary Winter Storm and Extreme Cold delivers heavy snowfall, ECCC warnings, blowing snow, icy roads,…
View more

Told "no" 37 times, this Indigenous-owned company brought electricity to James Bay anyway

Five Nations Energy Transmission Line connects remote First Nations to the Ontario power grid, delivering…
View more

Coalition pursues extra $7.25B for DOE nuclear cleanup, job creation

DOE Environmental Management Funding Boost seeks $7.25B to accelerate nuclear cleanup, upgrade Savannah River Site…
View more

'That can keep you up at night': Lessons for Canada from Europe's power crisis

Canada Net-Zero Grid Lessons highlight Europe's energy transition risks: Germany's power prices, wind and solar…
View more

Australia stuck in the middle of the US and China as tensions rise

Manus Island Naval Base strengthens US-Australia-PNG cooperation at Lombrum, near the South China Sea, bolstering…
View more

Sign Up for Electricity Forum’s Newsletter

Stay informed with our FREE Newsletter — get the latest news, breakthrough technologies, and expert insights, delivered straight to your inbox.

Electricity Today T&D Magazine Subscribe for FREE

Stay informed with the latest T&D policies and technologies.
  • Timely insights from industry experts
  • Practical solutions T&D engineers
  • Free access to every issue

Download the 2026 Electrical Training Catalog

Explore 50+ live, expert-led electrical training courses –

  • Interactive
  • Flexible
  • CEU-cerified