COLUMBUS, Ohio, Oct. 21, 1999 -- Datapult Billing Services has been selected to provide utility bill consolidation, rate analysis and bill verification for Speedway SuperAmerica LLC at its 2,200-plus gasoline and convenience store locations.

AEP Communications, a wholly owned subsidiary of American Electric Power (NYSE:AEP), offers Datapult Billing Services through its Datapultsm Internet-based portfolio of energy information services, which provide commercial and industrial customers the ability to lower energy, maintenance and administrative costs and prepare for deregulation opportunities.

Datapult Billing Services will receive all of Speedway SuperAmerica’s electric, gas, water and sewer bills and consolidate them into a single statement during the multi-year contract period. In addition, bills will be verified for accuracy, and accounts will be analyzed for proper tariff application.

The data compiled is accessible to the customer through a secured Internet site and can be viewed in several different reporting configurations.

“The bill verification and rate analysis service performed by Datapult energy experts will allow us to realize significant energy cost savings,” said Tony Kenney, Speedway SuperAmerica vice president - finance.

AEP Communications’ expertise in tracking utility costs and recommending ways to reduce those expenses is an important feature of Datapult Billing Services.

“By tracking Speedway SuperAmerica’s bills, we can provide bench marking analysis that will enable us to identify stores with the highest energy cost per square foot,” said Peter R. Thomas, vice president of AEP Communications. “These stores become candidates for Datapult Monitoring Services, which will reveal the loads that are contributing to the stores’ energy costs. Datapult energy experts can then develop plans to reduce energy consumption and costs even further,” Thomas said.

Speedway SuperAmerica LLC, a gasoline/convenience store and travel and fuel centers marketer based in Enon, Ohio, provides fuel and related products, fast food and a wide variety of merchandise to more than 2 million customers daily. Further information about Speedway SuperAmerica may be found on the World Wide Web at http://www.speedway.com.

AEP Communications LLC was formed in 1997 to provide fiber, wireless and information services to wholesale and retail customers. The company has built high-speed fiber optic lines and wireless antenna structures, and has invested in digital personal communications service providers. AEP Communications’ complete Datapult portfolio of energy information services includes Datapult Information Source, Datapult Billing Services, Datapult Monitoring, Datapult Central, Datapult Analysis and Datapult Notification.

AEP, a global energy company, is one of the United States´ largest investor-owned utilities, providing energy to 3 million customers in Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia. AEP has holdings in the United States, the United Kingdom, China and Australia. Wholly owned subsidiaries provide power engineering, energy consulting and energy management services around the world. The company is based in Columbus, Ohio. On Dec. 22, 1997, AEP announced a definitive merger agreement for a tax-free, stock-for-stock transaction with Central and South West Corp., a public utility holding company based in Dallas.
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Information about Datapult can be found on the World Wide Web at http://www.aepes.com/datapult or by calling toll-free 1-877-DATAPULT (1-877-328-2785).