American Electric Power gets Louisiana OK to acquire wind, solar resources
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American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) said Thursday its Southwestern Electric Power unit received approval from the Louisiana Public Service Commission to move forward with its plan to acquire up to 999 MW of renewable generation resources.
AEP (AEP) said the additional generating capacity is necessary to meet SWEPCO customers' energy needs, which have increased due to new rules from the Southwest Power Pool that require utilities to have available additional generation capacity to support reliability.
One solar project - the 200 MW Mooringsport facility in Louisiana - and two wind projects - the 598.4 MW Wagon Wheel plant in Oklahoma and the 200.6 MW Diversion facility in Texas - will be constructed by Invenergy and acquired by SWEPCO.
SWEPCO said its need for capacity is driven by the retirement of aging generation units, which has resulted in a capacity deficit beginning in 2023 that grows to 1,574 MW in 2028 after the retirement of other generating units.
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