COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — American Electric Power announced record profits for the second quarter of 2025 at the same time customers are being asked to pay more due to increasing electricity demand.
The company reported Q2 Generally Accepted Accounting Principles earnings of $1.2 billion ($2.29 per share), which is up from $340 million ($0.64 per share) in Q2 of 2024.
“Our record second-quarter results reflect the strength of our customer-focused strategy and the dedication of our teams across the company,” Bill Fehrman, AEP president and CEO, said in a statement.
The company also announced it secured agreements for 24 gigawatts of incremental load over the next five years, mostly in Ohio, Indiana, and Texas. Ohio’s power grid supplier, PJM, warned earlier this year that while there are resources available to meet typical summer demand, there were “extreme scenarios” in which there may have been power shortages.
AEP cited legislative changes in Ohio, Oklahoma and Texas in allowing for growing infrastructure investment opportunities.
“AEP is strategically positioned for sustained growth as we transform the electric grid and invest in new resources to meet the generational load growth opportunity in front of us, benefitting our customers, communities and all other stakeholders,” Fehrman said.
Electricity costs for Ohioans continue to climb as the rise in data centers in the state are placing increased demand on the electric grid. The Public Utilities Commission of Ohio recently ordered AEP Ohio, a subsidiary of AEP, to create new rate structures that would apply to data centers in an effort to protect other customers from having to foot the bill. Watch previous coverage in the player above.
Intel delayed construction of its New Albany project until at least 2031, leaving AEP Ohio with a nearly complete power station that now has nothing to power. The company said recent price hikes are not related, citing the pass-through charges from the generation suppliers.
A household using 1,000 kWh of electricity saw its bills increase by about $27 per month starting in June due to an increased cost of generation service, which is managed by PJM. AEP Ohio said that cost is passed on without a markup or profit.
AEP Ohio has blamed the bill increase on PJM, a regional transmission organization that coordinates the movement of electricity across Ohio and 12 other states. PJM does not generate electricity, but coordinates how electricity is transmitted to help meet demand.
In Ohio, where generation is limited and companies like AEP Ohio are not allowed to build power plants, increased demand hikes up generation prices. Columbus saw double-digit cost increases around the same time data centers began really honing in on central Ohio in 2022 and 2023.
In May, AEP Ohio filed for a base rate increase with PUCO, citing the need to maintain poles, wires and transformers. If approved, customers using 1,000 kWh per month would see their bills increase by about $3.95.
AEP Ohio said it last filed for a base rate increase in 2020, and since then, said it has invested more than $2 billion to improve its distribution system.
PUCO will review the latest request, which must be approved before it goes into effect. That process could take more than a year.
