COLUMBUS, Ohio, Aug. 20, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- American
Electric Power (NYSE: AEP) has named Peggy
Simmons president and chief operating officer of its Public
Service Company of Oklahoma (PSO)
utility company, effective Sept. 8.
Simmons replaces Stuart Solomon, who
is joining AEP's generation organization as senior vice president –
Generation Services.
Simmons will have responsibility for all aspects of electric
service for PSO's more than 550,000 customers. These include
distribution operations, safety, customer service, communications,
external affairs and regulatory functions. She will report to
Paul Chodak, executive vice
president – AEP Utilities.
"Peggy's operational experience, regulatory knowledge and
dynamic leadership style will serve us well as we continue to focus
on delivering exceptional service to our customers in Oklahoma and providing the new services,
energy resources and technologies that bring value to our
customers," Chodak said.
In his new role, Solomon will lead the development of generation
strategies for AEP's operating companies and support asset
optimization for the company's power plants, among other
responsibilities. He will report to Mark
McCullough, executive vice president – Generation. In the
first quarter of 2019, Solomon will begin a transition process to
succeed John McManus as senior vice
president – Environmental Services. McManus plans to retire in the
summer of 2019.
"Under Stuart's leadership, PSO has increased customer
satisfaction significantly as the company has focused on improving
reliability and adding new tools and services to help customers
better manage their energy costs," Chodak said. "His commitment to
operational excellence, safety and customer service will remain
critical in his new role in generation."
Simmons, 41, is currently managing director of transmission
asset strategy for AEP, responsible for transmission strategy and
policy, regulatory support, as well as outreach, siting and
rights-of-way for transmission projects. Prior to this role,
Simmons was manager of regulatory commodity sourcing for AEP Ohio.
She also served as manager of renewable energy in AEP's competitive
business. Simmons joined AEP in 1999 as an energy trading scheduler
in commercial operations. She earned a bachelor's degree in
economics from The Ohio State
University and a master's degree in public policy and
administration from Central Michigan
University. She is a graduate of The Executive
Program-Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia and is a member of the G100
Next Generation Leadership program.
Solomon, 56, was named president and chief operating officer of
PSO in 2004 and was vice president of public policy and regulatory
services for AEP from 2000 to 2004. He served as AEP's state
president in West Virginia from
1999 to 2000. Solomon joined AEP in 1999 from Central and South
West Corp., which merged with AEP in 2000. He joined CSW in 1986 at
its Central Power and Light subsidiary in Corpus Christi, Texas. After earning a law
degree, he rejoined CSW in 1992 and held several management and
administrative positions. Solomon earned a bachelor's degree from
Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas, a master's in business
administration from the University of Texas in
Austin and a law degree from the University of Colorado in Boulder.
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 224,000 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 33,000
megawatts of diverse generating capacity, including 4,200 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.
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SOURCE American Electric Power