The executive who has led American Electric Power Inc. since 2011 will pass the baton to the company’s CFO on Jan. 1.
Nick Akins, 61, is today giving up his president title and will resign as CEO Dec. 31 before becoming the Columbus-based utility’s executive chairman a day later. Stepping into the president’s role today and the CEO seat Jan. 1 is Julie Sloat, who has overseen AEP’s finances since January of last year and before that was senior vice president of treasury and risk for two years and president and CEO of AEP Ohio for nearly three years. The 53-year-old has been with the company since 1999 and will be the seventh CEO in its 116-year history.
“Julie is an exceptional leader who has successfully led key strategic areas for the company,” Akins said. “Her deep understanding of our business and industry, including her experience leading AEP Ohio and our regulatory team, will be critical as we continue to invest in new energy resources and grid enhancements.”
As part of being named president, Sloat’s base salary has been bumped to $850,000 from $600,000. In a regulatory filing, AEP said compensation changes related to her ascending to the CEO post will be finalized between now and then.
"Nick has transformed AEP during the 11 years that he has led the company,” Lead Director Sara Martinez Tucker said in a statement. “His focus on innovation, technology, and modernization of the grid and AEP's generation fleet is enabling clean, reliable and resilient energy to fuel growth in the communities that AEP serves.”
AEP employs about 16,700 people and has about 5.5 million regulated customers in 11 states. Akins and Sloat recently reported second-quarter profits of $525 million powered by solid load growth and said they are looking to launch a sale of AEP’s contracted renewables portfolio next month. Shares of the company (Ticker: AEP) were essentially flat after the CEO change news and have risen about 15% over the pat six months.
