FRANKFORT, Ky. – Kentucky Power, an operating unit of American Electric Power (NYSE: AEP), on Monday began offering customers the option to be notified by text message or email when their home or business is affected by a power outage.

Customers who enroll in the new service will receive an alert when an outage has been reported in their area. They will continue to get updates as Kentucky Power crews determine the outage cause and predict when power is expected to be restored at their home or business.

“Mobile email and text messaging is a valuable service widely used by other industries,” said Greg Pauley, Kentucky Power president and chief operating officer. “We are pleased to offer this service to our customers. As their energy partner, we are committed to enhancing service to our customers. These alerts will allow our customers to stay better informed with ease, especially during emergencies.”

By visiting www.kentuckypower.com and logging into their account, customers can enroll in one or both of the alert options and modify their specific notification preferences.

Kentucky Power plans to expand the program later this year so that customers can opt to receive billing alerts when a bill due date is approaching, as well as provide confirmation that a payment has been received. Kentucky Power, with headquarters in Frankfort, Ky., provides service to approximately 172,000 customers in all or part of 20 eastern Kentucky counties. It is a unit of the AEP system, one of the largest electric utilities in the United States, with more than 5 million customers in 11 states. AEP ranks among the nation’s largest generators of electricity, owning nearly 38,000 megawatts of generating capacity in the U.S. AEP also owns the nation’s largest electricity transmission system, a nearly 39,000-mile network that includes more 765 kilovolt extra-high voltage transmission lines than all other U.S. transmission systems combined.