Ohio
AEP Ohio: Data center electricity demands to put central Ohio on same tier as Manhattan.
AEP Ohio is asking state regulators to sign off on a new plan to deal with the surge in data centers in central Ohio that is expected to eat up so much electricity in coming years that demand for power in the region will be similar to all of Manhattan.
The power company on Monday asked the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio to require data centers to make a 10-year commitment to pay for a minimum of 90% of the electricity they request, even if they use less.
AEP says the new rate structure would also apply to cryptocurrency mining operations.
“In order to protect AEP Ohio customers and future economic development in its service territory, the company wants to help ensure that any large-scale transmission investment is right-sized to serve load that will show up at the time it is committed to show up,” AEP Ohio said in a filing with the PUCO. “This approach should help mitigate any risks that the load may not show up at the level and time indicated or that facilities will be overbuilt to serve the actual load that develops.”
“Demand for computing power from data centers, which require enormous amounts of electricity, is being fueled by artificial intelligence and other new technologies. AEP Ohio is seeing unprecedented demand from data center customers, especially in the central Ohio area,” Marc Reitter, AEP Ohio president and chief operating officer, said in a prepared release.
“While we see no concerns serving current or new residential and existing commercial or industrial customers, we need to ensure that the right long-term investments are made to the electric grid,” Reitter said. “We need accurate plans and solid commitments from large data center customers so the right facilities are built at the right time. This will help us keep Ohio open for business for all industries, while making sure customers aren’t paying for unused infrastructure.”
AEP said adding large users will require investment in new extra-high voltage transmission lines needed to bring more power to the region. Those lines can take seven to 10 years to plan and construct.
Historically, AEP said load growth was expected to be 1%-2% year over year.
“AEP has signed agreements that will nearly double the amount of load served in Ohio in just over five years’ time,” the company said in the filing. “The development of new transmission facilities to serve a new, significant amount of load is dependent upon the customer’s commitment to bringing such large loads online. The amount of investment required to connect in the amount of load already signed is a fraction of the cost required to connect the next batch of large hyperscale loads waiting to connect to the network.”
AEP’s transmission system in central Ohio is serving about 600 megawatts of load from data centers. That’s all come since 2017.
Since then Amazon, Google, Facebook and other companies have built data centers in the region. Amazon last summer announced a $7.8-billion expansion plan of its data service operations in central Ohio.
AEP has agreements for new demand from existing and additional customers to add 4,400 megawatts of power to central Ohio by 2030, making total demand for electricity in the region about equal to that of Manhattan, the company said.
The proposed rate commitment is meant to ensure that existing customers don’t pay for the needed infrastructure to meet the demand from these new customers, especially if they don’t ultimately connect to the system, the company said.
AEP Ohio, a unit of American Electric Power, provides electricity to 1.5 million customers.
mawilliams@dispatch.com
@BizMarkWilliams
Authorities arrested four adults on felony child endangerment charges after discovering 16 children in dire need of medical treatment Tuesday in a rural southern Ohio home.
The Ohio Bureau of Investigation and local sheriff’s department searched a home in the small village of Hamden, where they found the kids in what officials called “deplorable” conditions.”
“Conditions you cannot even imagine people being in, let alone children being in,” Ohio Attorney General Andy Wilson said at a news conference.
Law enforcement arrested Gary Siders Jr., Gary Siders Sr., Christina Siders and Elizabeth Siders. They have not yet been arraigned and assigned public defenders.
Vinton County prosecuting attorney William Archer said they were being charged with second-degree felony child endangering because it involves “serious physical harm.”
Officials did not confirm if the children were related but said it was not a human trafficking situation. They said the adults were not locals and appeared to have been traveling.
Hamden has a population of less than 1,000 people and is about 60 miles southeast of Columbus.
The children ranged from ages 1.5 to 18 and included both boys and girls, officials said. Several were in serious conditions when found, and two had to be flown to level one trauma centers because of their injuries.
Wilson said it was the worst scene he had ever encountered in his entire career, describing what he saw as “pure evil.”
Law enforcement were also executing a secondary search warrant at the home Tuesday, and the investigation is ongoing. The four adults will appear in court Wednesday morning.
“Justice will be served for these children,” Wilson said.
UPDATE 6/30/26 @ 6:30 p.m.
VINTON COUNTY, Ohio (WSAZ) – Four people are in custody Tuesday after a search found 16 children inside a home in the Hamden area of Vinton County, officials said during a news conference.
“This is pure evil what we saw down here today,” said Ohio Attorney General Andy Wilson, who described it as one of the worst scenes he has ever seen.
It happened in the 100 block of Ohmer Street.
Two children had to be life-flighted to trauma centers, and the victims are being treated at hospitals throughout Ohio.
Their ages range from one and a half to 18 years old.
“Lives were in danger,” officials said during the news conference, saying it has been a long-term investigation.
They said there is a secondary investigation underway at the property.
The suspects are set to be arraigned at 10:30 a.m. Wednesday in Vinton County Common Pleas Court.
The Ohio Attorney General’s Office, the Vinton County Sheriff’s Office, the Vinton County Prosecutor’s Office and the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation are among the investigators.
We have a crew at the scene working to get more details. Keep checking the WSAZ app for the latest.
ORIGINAL STORY
VINTON COUNTY, Ohio (WSAZ) – A news conference is scheduled Tuesday evening about a search warrant that was executed at a home in the Hamden area of Vinton County.
Ohio Attorney General Andy Wilson’s office made that announcement, saying the news conference is scheduled at 6 p.m. in McArthur, Ohio.
Along with Wilson, Vinton County Sheriff Ryan Cain, Vinton County Prosecutor William Archer and members of the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation are set to attend the news conference.
The search warrant was executed at a home along Ohmer Street, with a heavy law enforcement presence reported throughout the day.
Additional details are unavailable now, but we have a crew headed to the scene.
Keep checking the WSAZ app for the latest.
Copyright 2026 WSAZ. All rights reserved.
Central Ohio 2026 summer weather forecast
Weather forecasts call for a hotter- and drier-than-normal summer in the region.
The Columbus Dispatch
Central Ohio is under an extreme heat warning starting at noon due to dangerously hot conditions.
The National Weather Service in Wilmington issued the extreme heat warning from noon June 30 to 8 p.m. July 2 in central and south central Ohio as well as parts of Kentucky. The heat index will rise to about 105 degrees, the weather service said.
On June 30, there will be sunny skies and a high near 95 degrees in Columbus, according to a forecast by the weather service. The heat index will reach about 106 degrees.
Columbus will see a high of 98 both July 1 and July 2, with a heat index as high as 106 on July 2, the weather service said.
People should drink plenty of fluids, stay in air conditioned rooms and out of the sun and check on their relatives and neighbors.
People should not leave young children and pets in unattended vehicles because car interiors will reach lethal temperatures in minutes, the weather service said.
Cooling centers will open June 30, and the city has waived bus fares and public pool entry fees during the heat wave.
Public safety and breaking news reporter Bailey Gallion can be reached at bagallion@dispatch.com
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