SHREVEPORT, La. (Oct. 10, 2024) – Southwestern Electric Power Co., (SWEPCO, a subsidiary of American Electric Power (Nasdaq: AEP), is making way for future development at the site of the retired H.W. Pirkey Power Plant.  

Work continued today to dismantle the stacks and boiler of the old plant to pave the way for future development at the decommissioned facility in Hallsville, Texas. 

H.W. Pirkey began operations on a snowy Jan. 3, 1985, serving SWEPCO customers and the Hallsville community for 38 years. The 675-megawatt plant was named after Henry W. Pirkey, Jr., SWEPCO president from 1965 to 1972. Pirkey was SWEPCO’s first lignite-fired power plant. 

When the 2023 retirement of AEP’s Pirkey Plant was announced in 2020, work began quickly to help employees and the local community transition to the future. SWEPCO and the Pirkey Plant partnered with the Just Transition Fund to form the Pirkey Transition Task Force, consisting of over two dozen local leaders, organizations, school districts, and business owners. The task force met bi-weekly to gather data, set priorities, engage the community, and develop an action plan. This approach allowed SWEPCO and the Pirkey Plant to participate actively without leading the discussion. This collaboration was pioneering in the energy industry.  

“We know customers need an energy system that is available to deliver reliable, affordable, and environmentally sustainable power where and when they need it,” explained Brett Mattison, SWEPCO President and COO. “Meeting our customers’ needs – now and the future – requires a diverse generation portfolio, and we’re actively working towards additional, dispatchable generation.” 

 In January, SWEPCO announced three Requests for Proposals (RFPs) for additional generation and capacity resources to supply the needs of its customers and comply with Southwest Power Pool’s planning reserve margin requirements.  

Competitive reviews are underway and could include resources of up to 2,100 MW of accredited capacity through a range of generation sources, including natural gas, wind, solar and storage resources.  

“Readying the Hallsville site allows us to advance our goals for our energy delivery system and further diversify SWEPCO’s generation resource mix,” Mattison added. 

SWEPCO is requesting proposals for these resources through purchase and sale agreements (PSA), power purchase agreements (PPA) and capacity purchase agreements (CPA).  

Once proposals are selected from the three RFPs, SWEPCO will seek necessary regulatory approvals.