COLUMBUS, Ohio, Oct. 29, 2001 - AEP Pro Serv Inc., the non-regulated professional services subsidiary of Columbus, Ohio-based American Electric Power (NYSE: AEP), has been awarded a contract by the CPV Atlantic Project for the engineering, design, construction and project management of a 250-megawatt (mw) power plant in the City of Port St. Lucie, Fla. The scope of AEP Pro Serv´s work will also include start-up and commissioning of the combined cycle natural gas-fired facility.

The Notice to Proceed with construction was issued by Competitive Power Ventures Inc. (CPV) on Oct. 12, 2001, in association with the sale of its CPV Atlantic Project to Orion Power Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: ORN). CPV had completed the two-year pre-construction phase, including the permitting process for the facility. Commercial operation of the facility is expected in the first quarter of 2004.

The project will be situated on a 21-acre site in the LTC Ranch Industrial Park in the City of Port St. Lucie, Fla. The generating station will utilize the cleanest proven technology and will employ approximately 200 construction workers.

"AEP Pro Serv has a great deal of experience in power plant construction, and we´re pleased to be able to apply that experience to this project," said John R. Jones, president of AEP Pro Serv. AEP Pro Serv worked previously with Orion Power as project manager on the 500-mw Ceredo Electric Generating Plant in Ceredo, W.Va. AEP Pro Serv completed that project earlier this year on schedule.

AEP Pro Serv, Inc., with offices in Columbus, Ohio, Dallas, Texas, and South Portland, Maine, provides its clients with a full array of project management, environmental, engineering, construction, operations, technical services and maintenance expertise. The detailed design and equipment procurement services for this contract will be performed in AEP Pro Serv’s South Portland, Maine, office.

American Electric Power is a multinational energy company based in Columbus, Ohio. AEP owns and operates more than 38,000 mw 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 the U.S. in electricity volume with a growing presence in natural gas. 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, energy management and telecommunications.

Orion Power Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: ORN), headquartered in Baltimore, Md., is a fast-growing independent electric power generating company formed in March 1998 to acquire, develop, own and operate power-generating facilities in the newly deregulated wholesale markets throughout North America. Since its inception, Orion Power Holdings has invested over $4 billion in 81 power plants currently in operation with a total capacity of 5,926 mw and an additional 5,000 mw in construction and various stages of development.

Competitive Power Ventures, Inc., based in Silver Spring, Md., is a power development company focusing on high efficiency, environmentally desirable power projects throughout the U.S. CPV has approximately 12 projects under development with a total capacity of approximately 6,000 mw in the U.S. A majority interest in CPV is held by Warburg Pincus.

Since 1971, Warburg Pincus has invested approximately $12 billion in 450 companies in 29 countries. The firm currently has $10 billion under management, with an additional $5 billion available for investment in a range of industries including business services, communications, financial services, healthcare and life sciences, information technology, media and natural resources/energy. Warburg Pincus has invested more than $700 million in 14 companies involved in oil and gas exploration and production, energy, services and power projects. The firm actively invests in companies focused on developing energy infrastructure, including new power plants, pipelines, gas storage facilities and companies that are developing innovative technologies including distributed generation, microturbines, fuel cells and software.

The comments set forth above include forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, including (1) statements concerning the Company´s plans, objectives, expected performance and expenditures and (2) other statements that are other than statements of historical fact. These forward-looking statements reflect assumptions, and involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Among the factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from forward-looking statements are electric load and customer growth, abnormal weather conditions, availability of generating capacity, the ability to recover net regulatory assets and other stranded costs in connection with deregulation of generation, the outcome of environmental regulation and litigation, the impact of fluctuation in commodity prices and interest rates, and other risks and unforeseen events over which the Company has no control. The reader is also directed to the Company´s periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission for additional factors that may impact the Company´s results of operations and financial condition. Furthermore, historical results may not be indicative of the Company´s future performance.