Nick Akins

Nick Akins is chairman, president and chief executive officer of American Electric Power. He is AEP’s 11th chairman, 10th president and sixth CEO in the company’s more than 100-year history. He is a member of AEP’s board of directors and is the only management representative on the board.

Akins rose through the ranks at both AEP and the former Central and South West Corp. (CSW), which merged with AEP in 2000. Akins began his career in 1982 as an electrical engineer before moving up to positions of increasing responsibility. Prior to being elected president of AEP in December 2010, he served as executive vice president - Generation from 2006 through 2010 with responsibility for all generation activities of AEP’s approximately 38,000 MW of generation resources.

Previously, he served as president and chief operating officer for Southwestern Electric Power Company, and held other leadership roles in Energy Marketing Services, Transmission, External Affairs and Industry Restructuring. 

A native of Louisiana, Akins received his bachelor’s degree in 1982 in electrical engineering from Louisiana Tech University in Ruston and a master’s degree in electrical engineering in 1986 from Louisiana Tech. Additional training includes executive management programs at Louisiana State University, the University of Idaho and the Reactor Technology Course for Utility Executives at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He is a registered professional engineer in Texas.

Akins is a former chairman of the Board of Directors of both the Edison Electric Institute (EEI) and the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI), as well as the former chair of the U.S. Business Roundtable (BRT) Energy and Environment Committee, of which he remains a member. Additionally, he is a member of the boards of EEI, Institute of Nuclear Power Operators (INPO), Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI), Global Sustainable Electricity Partnership (GSEP), The Columbus Partnership, Columbus Downtown Development Corporation, Nuclear Electric Insurance Limited (NEIL), Fifth Third Bancorp, OhioHealth and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum.

Akins and his wife, Donna, live in New Albany, Ohio.