COLUMBUS, Ohio, Feb. 4, 2002 - American Electric Power (NYSE: AEP) today announced that it has retained Schroder Salomon Smith Barney (SSSB) and ABN AMRO to advise AEP on prospects for the divestment of SEEBOARD, AEP’s electric and gas distribution subsidiary in southeast England.

Representing SSSB is Mark Connell, director of European Utilities, London (+44 (0)20-7986 7034). Representing ABN AMRO is Joost Bergsma, director and head of the Power & Utilities Group, London (+44 (0)207 678 7816). SSSB is the European investment bank of Salomon Smith Barney, the investment banking group owned by Citigroup. ABN AMRO, based in the Netherlands with offices in 70 countries, is one of world’s largest banks.

AEP acquired SEEBOARD as part of AEP’s merger with Central and South West Corp. (CSW), a U.S. electric utility, in June 2000. CSW had acquired SEEBOARD in 1996. Because of accounting restrictions stemming from AEP’s merger with CSW, any divestment of SEEBOARD is not expected until the third quarter of 2002.

SEEBOARD, headquartered in Crawley, West Sussex, sells electricity and gas to about 2 million customers in the UK. The majority of these customers are in Kent, Sussex and parts of Surrey.

American Electric Power is a multinational energy company based in Columbus, Ohio. AEP owns and operates more than 38,000 megawatts of generating capacity, making it America’s largest generator of electricity. The company is also a leading wholesale energy marketer and trader, ranking second in North America in wholesale electricity and wholesale natural gas volume. AEP provides retail electricity to more than 7 million customers worldwide and has holdings in the U.S. and select international markets. Wholly owned subsidiaries are involved in power engineering and construction services.