SWEPCO Names New Vice President of Regulatory Affairs & Finance
AEP Associate General Counsel Melissa Gage Tapped to Succeed Tom Brice as SWEPCO VP, Regulatory Affairs and Finance. Brice to retire after 32-years’ service. Gage brings extensive legal, regulatory, and utility commission experience to the role.
Shreveport, La. Sept. 26, 2024 –Southwestern Electric Power Company (SWEPCO) recently named Melissa Gage as its new VP Regulatory Affairs and Finance. Gage takes over from Tom Brice, who will retire in December following a successful 32-year career at SWEPCO.
Gage will take the helm of the company’s regulatory and finance organization October 26. She will operate throughout SWEPCO’s service area, which encompasses Arkansas, Louisiana, and Texas, and she will be primarily based at AEP’s offices in Austin, TX.
“Melissa has been an integral part of every regulatory filing and proceeding at SWEPCO for many years. Her knowledge, legal experience, proactive approach and focus on building relationships will be important in our work to serve our customers,” said Brett Mattison, SWEPCO President and COO.
Gage joined American Electric Power (AEP), SWEPCO’s parent company, in 2015, primarily providing legal guidance to SWEPCO and other AEP operating companies in Texas with various proceedings at the PUCT.
Her role expanded in 2020 when she was promoted to Associate General Counsel for AEP’s western regulatory footprint which included AEP Texas, Electric Transmission Texas, Public Service Company of Oklahoma and SWEPCO. As Associate General Counsel at AEP, she led a team of in-house and external attorneys in various regulatory matters before the (PUCT), Louisiana Public Service Commission (LPSC), Arkansas Public Service Commission (APSC), and Oklahoma Corporation Commission (OCC).
Before AEP, Gage worked at a law firm in Austin where she represented electric and water utilities and consumers in a wide range of regulatory matters before the PUCT, Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, Railroad Commission, and all levels of the Texas court system.
“Through my work with American Electric Power, I’ve had the opportunity to work with and support the SWEPCO team. I look forward to this new opportunity and remain committed to finding smart solutions that work for our customers, our states, and the company. I am eager to join the team and help share all the ways SWEPCO continues to invest to improve the plants, the poles and wires that deliver energy to so many local economies.”
Gage received a Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance and Bachelor of Arts in Spanish from the University of Texas at Austin and earned her Juris Doctor (JD) degree from Southern Methodist University.
“I’m looking forward to Melissa joining the SWEPCO leadership team,” Mattison said. “Together, we will continue enhancing our regulatory relationships and unlocking shareholder value by driving the company’s strategic priorities forward in service to our customers by delivering safe, reliable and affordable energy to our customers.”
Tom Brice will stay on through the end of the year to ensure a seamless transition.
“I appreciate Tom so much for his dedicated service to SWEPCO and our customers,” Mattison added. “He and his team have been instrumental in diversification of SWEPCO’s generation fleet and his heart for service is evident in every interaction.”
About Southwestern Electric Power Co. (SWEPCO)
We deliver safe, reliable and affordable power to more than half a million homes and businesses in Arkansas, Louisiana and Texas. Our 1,400 employees power today’s necessities and inspire tomorrow’s possibilities. You’ll see us improving communities, promoting sustainability and building grid resiliency throughout our territory, spanning more than 25,000 distribution line miles. Our work in energy efficiency has been repeatedly recognized by the U.S. Department of Energy, which honored us as an ENERGY STAR® 2023 Partner of the Year for Sustained Excellence. We recognize that innovative approaches to workforce development are necessary to effectively recruit qualified, diverse talent in today’s competitive labor market and this includes a commitment to building a diverse and skilled workforce through partnerships to grow the talent pipeline. We’re proud to be named Texas Workforce Commission’s 2023 Employer of Excellence and to receive the 2023 Curt Eysink Excellence in Workplace Development award from the Louisiana Community and Technical College System. Because we produce and deliver one of the most powerful forces on earth, we keep the safety and well-being of our customers and employees at the forefront, always. We are proud of the Million Work Hours Safety Award from the Arkansas Department of Labor Licensing and Arkansas Workers’ Compensation Commission on behalf of our Flint Creek Power Plant for working 4 million hours without a lost-time accident. We believe we can deliver reliable electricity while protecting the environment. Our work to support habitat conservation was recently recognized by the Wildlife Habitat Council Conservation (WHC) who awarded us a Silver Certification for supporting sustainable ecosystems at our Eagle Watch Nature Trail. SWEPCO is an American Electric Power (Nasdaq: AEP) company. SWEPCO’s headquarters are in Shreveport, LA. News releases and other information about SWEPCO can be found at SWEPCO.com. Connect with us by following Facebook.com/SWEPCO, Twitter.com/SWEPCOnews, Instagram.com/swepco, Youtube.com/SWEPCOtv and LinkedIn.com/company/swepco.