COLUMBUS, Ohio, March 23, 1998 -- Eugene E. Fitzpatrick, executive vice president nuclear generation for American Electric Power (NYSE: AEP), has announced he will retire May 1. Fitzpatrick, 61, has headed the nuclear generation group since 1991. During that tenure, AEP's Cook Nuclear Plant in Bridgman, Mich., has been recognized as superior by the Institute of Nuclear Power Operations (INPO) and received the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's highest ratings during several evaluation periods. Nuclear Generation was the first recipient of the AEP Horizon Safety Award, and nuclear generation employees worked more than 10 million hours without a lost-time accident during a period from 1992 to 1997. No decision on a replacement has been announced. "Gene Fitzpatrick has earned the respect of his industry through effective leadership and performance," said E. Linn Draper Jr., AEP chairman, president and chief executive officer. "In a highly challenging time for nuclear power, he has led one of the best plant operations in the business. He has set a tone of dedication and attention to detail in the plant's ongoing architectural and design changes that will put the Cook Nuclear units back on course to an even higher standard of excellence. I wish he'd stay, but this is a personal decision made for personal reasons and I respect that." Fitzpatrick previously was vice president and site director of the Oyster Creek Nuclear Station, owned by General Public Utilities. A 1959 graduate of the U. S. Naval Academy, Fitzpatrick served for many years in the Navy's nuclear program, retiring in 1979 as a commander. He then joined Commonwealth Edison Company and served in a number of nuclear-related assignments, including station manager of the Braidwood, Ill., Nuclear Station. Fitzpatrick has served on numerous nuclear industry committees and INPO industry review groups. He currently is active on the Electric Power Research Institute's (EPRI) Nuclear Power Council as a member of the executive committee, is chairman of the Utility Management Board of the Advanced Reactor Corporation, and serves on the Nuclear Energy Institute's (NEI) Nuclear Strategic Issues Advisory Committee Steering Group, NEI's Executive Task Force on Regulatory Process, and the Ad Hoc Committee for the Strategic Plan for Building New Nuclear Power Plants. Fitzpatrick holds a master of science degree in mechanical engineering and an engineer's degree in naval architecture/marine engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. A member of the Bar of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania and the Pennsylvania Bar, he earned his juris doctor degree from George Washington University. Fitzpatrick was awarded the Navy's Commendation Medal and Meritorious Service Medal. AEP, a global energy company, is one of the United States' largest investor-owned utilities, providing energy to 2.9 million customers in Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, West Virginia, Virginia, Tennessee and Kentucky. AEP has holdings in the United States, the United Kingdom and China. Wholly owned subsidiaries provide power engineering, consulting and management services around the world. The company is based in Columbus, Ohio.