COLUMBUS, Ohio, Aug. 24, 2004 - Michael Heyeck has been named vice president - asset management for American Electric Power’s (NYSE: AEP) Transmission organization, the company announced today.

In his new position, Heyeck will be responsible for transmission planning, system engineering and maintenance management processes, strategic and tactical business plans and budgeting for more than 39,000 miles of AEP’s transmission facilities in 11 states. He will report to Richard Verret, senior vice president, Transmission.

“Mike’s wealth of experience with transmission and his budgeting acumen will be critical for helping ensure we continue to operate our substantial transmission assets as reliably as possible,” Verret said.

Heyeck, 49, was previously managing director - corporate budgeting and economic forecasting and had directed budgeting, including managing operations, maintenance and capital budgets for AEP and its subsidiaries, since June 2000. In June 2003, he was given additional responsibilities for economic forecasting.

Heyeck is returning to AEP’s Transmission group. From 1997 until June 2000, Heyeck worked as associate director and then director of AEP’s Transmission Operations department with responsibilities for operation of all AEP’s transmission assets including more than 2,000 substations, the AEP System Control Center and five transmission dispatch centers.

Heyeck joined AEP in 1976 and has held various engineering and management positions in AEP’s system planning and corporate planning and budgeting organizations.

Heyeck earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in electrical engineering from the New Jersey Institute of Technology. He earned a master’s in business administration from the University of Dayton. He is a graduate of the Executive Program at the University of Virginia’s Darden School and the AEP Management Development Program at the Ohio State University.

Heyeck is currently serving as mayor of Westerville, Ohio, a part-time position. Heyeck also has been elected as a member of Westerville City Council since 1993.

American Electric Power owns more than 36,000 megawatts of generating capacity in the United States and is the nation´s largest electricity generator. AEP is also one of the largest electric utilities in the United States, with more than 5 million customers linked to AEP’s 11-state electricity transmission and distribution grid. The company is based in Columbus, Ohio.