American Electric Power has secured turbine supply for 13 gigawatts of new gas-fired generation capacity that can be deployed by 2031, company chairman, president and chief executive Bill Fehrman said during a second-quarter earnings call. The utility added 3 gigawatts of turbine capacity in the second quarter alone through deals with GE Vernova and Mitsubishi, and has also locked in options for another 10 gigawatts of turbines by 2035.
The buildout comes as AEP's contracted data center and large industrial load pipeline grew to 69 gigawatts, up from 63 gigawatts in the first quarter. Texas accounts for 45 gigawatts of that pipeline, with Ohio at 12 gigawatts and Oklahoma, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana and Virginia together contributing another 12 gigawatts.
AEP Chief Financial Officer Trevor Mihalik said the timing of the additional turbine options lines up with the utility's plans to replace aging coal and gas plants across its regulated territories. AEP has a $78 billion five-year capital plan running through 2030 and is set to release an updated version this fall.
Fehrman called turbines "a scarce resource" that will keep growing more valuable as utilities race to supply power for data centers and other large industrial loads. AEP's utilities expect to add 27.2 gigawatts of new generation by 2035, including 15.3 gigawatts of gas, 6.4 gigawatts of solar, 5.1 gigawatts of wind and 500 megawatts of storage.
Source: Utility Dive - https://www.utilitydive.com/news/aep-secures-13-gw-of-gas-turbines-as-generation-central-to-growth-plans/826808/