American Electric Power has named Peggy Simmons president and chief operating officer of Public Service Company of Oklahoma (PSO) effective Sept. 8. Simmons replaces Stuart Solomon, who is joining AEP’s generation organization as senior vice president – Generation Services.
Simmons will be responsible for all aspects of PSO’s service, including customer service, distribution operations, safety, communications, external affairs and regulatory functions. She will report to Paul Chodak, executive vice president – AEP Utilities.
“I look forward to working with the team at PSO and our outstanding community partners in Oklahoma,” said Simmons. “As technology and customer needs continue to change, we’ll work together to continue PSO’s great history of delivering exceptional service to our customers while providing the new services, energy resources and technologies that bring value to the areas we serve.”
Solomon will transition to his new role after 14 years leading PSO. During his tenure he was active in numerous nonprofit organizations including the Tulsa Regional Chamber, State Chamber, Tulsa Area United Way, The Nature Conservancy, Gilcrease Museum, Southwest Power Pool and Oklahoma Academy, among many others.
“It’s been a great honor to lead PSO and work with our talented team to serve our customers, communities and the state over the past 14 years,” Solomon said. “I’m very proud of what we’ve accomplished together. I’m confident Peggy will continue strengthening PSO’s partnerships and connections to those we serve.”
In his new role, Solomon will lead the development of generation strategies for AEP’s operating companies and support asset optimization for the company’s power plants, among other responsibilities. He will report to Mark McCullough, executive vice president – Generation.
“Under Stuart’s leadership, PSO has increased customer satisfaction significantly as the company has focused on improving reliability and adding new tools and services to help customers better manage their energy costs,” Chodak said. “His commitment to operational excellence, safety and customer service will remain critical in his new role in generation.”
Simmons, 41, is currently managing director of transmission asset strategy for AEP, responsible for transmission strategy and policy, regulatory support, as well as outreach, siting and rights-of-way for transmission projects. Prior to this role, Simmons was manager of regulatory commodity sourcing for AEP Ohio. She also served as manager of renewable energy in AEP’s competitive business. Simmons joined AEP in 1999 as an energy trading scheduler in commercial operations. She earned a bachelor’s degree in economics from The Ohio State University and a master’s degree in public policy and administration from Central Michigan University. She is a graduate of The Executive Program-Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia and is a member of the G100 Next Generation Leadership program.
Solomon, 56, was named president and chief operating officer of PSO in 2004 and was vice president of public policy and regulatory services for AEP from 2000 to 2004. He served as AEP’s state president in West Virginia from 1999 to 2000. Solomon joined AEP in 1999 from Central and South West Corp., which merged with AEP in 2000. He joined CSW in 1986 at its Central Power and Light subsidiary in Corpus Christi, Texas. After earning a law degree, he rejoined CSW in 1992 and held several management and administrative positions. Solomon earned a bachelor’s degree from Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas, a master’s in business administration from the University of Texas in Austin and a law degree from the University of Colorado in Boulder.
PSO, a unit of American Electric Power (NYSE: AEP), is an electric utility company serving more than 550,000 customer accounts in eastern and southwestern Oklahoma. Based in Tulsa, PSO has nearly 3,800 megawatts of generating capacity and is one of the largest distributors of wind energy in the state. News releases and other information about PSO can be found at www.PSOklahoma.com. # # #
