For over a century, Southwestern Electric Power Company (SWEPCO) has been a trusted energy provider, tracing its roots back to 1912. Founded by the Dawes brothers-Rufus, Henry, and Charles-SWEPCO emerged from a collaboration of their Ark-La-Tex-based companies. Today, we proudly serve more than half a million customers across Louisiana, Texas, and Arkansas.
Our Commitment to Electrification and Community
In its early days, SWEPCO was instrumental in electrifying rural areas while also serving urban centers such as Shreveport, Louisiana; Texarkana, Arkansas and Texas; Longview, Texas; and Fayetteville, Arkansas. Our mission continues today as we support industrial growth and enhance the quality of life for all our customers across the service territory.
Investment in Infrastructure
Throughout the mid-20th century, SWEPCO made significant investments in building a robust generation fleet. Major power plants, including the Wilkes and Welsh Power Plant in Texas, Flint Creek Plant in Arkansas, and our Louisiana generation fleet, anchored our generation capacity for decades. These strategic investments have enabled us to meet rising energy demands while ensuring reliability and affordability for our customers. Additionally, we expanded our transmission network to support growth and regional interconnection.
A Stronger Future with AEP
In 2000, SWEPCO joined American Electric Power (AEP), one of the nation's largest electric utilities. This partnership enhanced our operational capabilities and opened doors for innovation and investment. In 2007, we integrated customers in five Texas Panhandle counties previously served by AEP Texas. Three years later, we acquired Valley Electric Membership Corporation (VEMCO), adding approximately 30,000 customers across eight parishes in Louisiana. In 2012, we launched the nation's first ultra-supercritical coal generating unit, showcasing our commitment to innovation.
Dedicated Workforce
SWEPCO's success is built on the dedication of our workforce, committed to serving customers with excellence. Our employees across generation, transmission, and distribution work around the clock to ensure safe, reliable power flows to homes and businesses. Whether operating power plants, monitoring distribution systems, restoring service after storms, or maintaining the grid, our team members take pride in their work and their role as trusted partners in the communities we serve.
Modernizing for the Future
Today, SWEPCO is addressing a once-in-a-generation challenge to better serve our customers and strengthen our industry. Our teams are dedicated to customer service, reflected in our projects focused on modernizing and diversifying our generation portfolio. We are building new systems, enhancing processes, and leveraging technology. To tackle capacity challenges, we are adding more dispatchable generation while incorporating wind and solar resources. We are also planning improvements to extend service from other units, ensuring reliability, affordability, and best-in-class customer service.
Our Mission
Through every chapter of our history and into the future, SWEPCO's mission remains steadfast: to serve customers and communities by providing safe, dependable, and affordable power, along with forward-looking energy solutions. Discover how we are committed to improving lives and enhancing communities through our energy services.