AEP increases investment plan 30% on generation, transmission spending

Utility Dive · Ethan Howland · 2026-10-29 11:05 UTC

American Electric Power’s contracted large loads jumped 22%, to 84 GW, mainly on a 10.4-GW data center in Ohio being developed by SB Energy, company officials said Wednesday.

American Electric Power increased its five-year capital expenditure plan to $100 billion, up 30% from its previous $78 billion plan, driven by expected generation and transmission spending, company officials said during an earnings call on Wednesday.

AEP, based in Columbus, Ohio, plans to spend $20 billion on gas-fired generation and $37 billion on transmission through 2031, up from $13 billion and $33 billion under its last investment plan, respectively, according to company presentations.

“Contracted customer demand is growing faster than the operating output of our existing fleet, creating a clear durable need for new baseload dispatchable generation,” Trevor Mihalik, AEP executive vice president and CFO, said on the earnings call. AEP also expects its utilities will spend $8 billion on renewable energy projects over the next five years.

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