Exhibit 1(b)

                      AMERICAN ELECTRIC POWER COMPANY, INC.

                             Underwriting Agreement

                           Dated ____________________

     AGREEMENT made between AMERICAN ELECTRIC POWER COMPANY, INC., a corporation
organized and existing under the laws of the State of New York (the "Company"),
and the several persons, firms and corporations (the "Underwriters") named in
Exhibit 1 hereto.

                                   WITNESSETH:

     WHEREAS, the Company proposes to issue and sell __________ shares of its
[Common Stock]; and

     WHEREAS, the Underwriters have designated the person signing this Agreement
(the Representative) to execute this Agreement on behalf of the respective
Underwriters and to act for the respective Underwriters in the manner provided
in this Agreement; and

     WHEREAS, the Company has prepared and filed, in accordance with the
provisions of the Securities Act of 1933 (the Act), with the Securities and
Exchange Commission (the Commission), a registration statement and prospectus or
prospectuses relating to the [Common Stock] and such registration statement has
become effective; and

     WHEREAS, such registration statement, as it may have been amended to the
date hereof, including the financial statements, the documents incorporated or
deemed incorporated therein by reference and the exhibits, being herein called
the Registration Statement, and the prospectus, as included or referred to in
the Registration Statement to become effective, as it may be last amended or
supplemented prior to the effectiveness of the agreement (the Basic Prospectus),
and the Basic Prospectus, as supplemented by one or more prospectus supplements
which includes certain information relating to the Underwriters, the number of
shares, price and terms of offering, the interest rate and redemption prices of
the [Common Stock], first filed with the Commission pursuant to the applicable
paragraph of Rule 424(b) of the Commission's General Rules and Regulations under
the Act (the Rules), including all documents then incorporated or deemed to have
been incorporated therein by reference, being herein call the Prospectus.

     NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the premises and the mutual covenants
herein contained, it is agreed between the parties as follows:

     1. Purchase and Sale: Upon the basis of the warranties and representations
and on the terms and subject to the conditions herein set forth, the Company
agrees to sell to the respective Underwriters named in Exhibit 1 hereto,
severally and not jointly, and the respective Underwriters,



severally and not jointly, agree to purchase from the Company, the respective
number of shares of the [Common Stock] set opposite their names in Exhibit 1
hereto, together aggregating all of the [Common Stock] issued under the
above-referenced Registration Statement, at a price equal to $______ per share.

     2. Payment and Delivery: Payment for the [Common Stock] shall be made to
the Company or its order by certified or bank check or checks, payable in New
York Clearing House funds, at the office of Simpson Thacher & Bartlett, 425
Lexington Avenue, New York, New York 10017-3909, or at such other place as the
Company and the Representative shall mutually agree in writing, upon the
delivery of the [Common Stock] certificates to the Representative for the
respective accounts of the Underwriters against receipt therefor signed by the
Representative on behalf of itself and for the other Underwriters. Such payments
and delivery shall be made at 10:00 A.M., New York Time, on _______________ (or
on such later business day, not more than five business days subsequent to such
day, as may be mutually agreed upon by the Company and the Underwriters), unless
postponed in accordance with the provisions of Section 7 hereof. The time at
which payment and delivery are to be made is herein called the Time of Purchase.

     [The delivery of the [Common Stock] certificates shall be made in fully
registered form, registered in the name of CEDE & CO., to the offices of The
Depository Trust Company in New York, New York and the Underwriters shall accept
such delivery.]

     3. Conditions of Underwriters' Obligations: The several obligations of the
Underwriters hereunder are subject to the accuracy of the warranties and
representations on the part of the Company on the date hereof and at the Time of
Purchase and to the following other conditions:

          (a) That all legal proceedings to be taken and all legal opinions to
     be rendered in connection with the issue and sale of the [Common Stock]
     shall be satisfactory in form and substance to Dewey Ballantine LLP,
     counsel to the Underwriters.

          (b) That, at the Time of Purchase, the Representative shall be
     furnished with the following opinions, dated the day of the Time of
     Purchase, with conformed copies or signed counterparts thereof for the
     other Underwriters, with such changes therein as may be agreed upon by the
     Company and the Representative with the approval of Dewey Ballantine LLP,
     counsel to the Underwriters:

               (1) Opinion of Simpson Thacher & Bartlett and any of Thomas G.
          Berkemeyer, Esq., Ann B. Graf, Esq., David C. House, Esq., William E.
          Johnson, Esq. or Kevin R. Fease, Esq., counsel to the Company,
          substantially in the forms attached hereto as Exhibits A and B; and



               (2) Opinion of Dewey Ballantine LLP, counsel to the Underwriters,
          substantially in the form attached hereto as Exhibit C.

          (c) That the Representative shall have received a letter from Deloitte
     & Touche LLP in form and substance satisfactory to the Representative,
     dated as of the day of the Time of Purchase, (i) confirming that they are
     independent public accountants within the meaning of the Act and the
     applicable published rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder,
     (ii) stating that in their opinion the financial statements audited by them
     and included or incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement
     complied as to form in all material respects with the then applicable
     accounting requirements of the Commission, including the applicable
     published rules and regulations of the Commission and (iii) covering as of
     a date not more than five business days prior to the day of the Time of
     Purchase such other matters as the Representative reasonably requests.

          (d) That no amendment to the Registration Statement and that no
     prospectus or prospectus supplement of the Company relating to the [Common
     Stock] and no document which would be deemed incorporated in the Prospectus
     by reference filed subsequent to the date hereof and prior to the Time of
     Purchase shall contain material information substantially different from
     that contained in the Registration Statement which is unsatisfactory in
     substance to the Representative or unsatisfactory in form to Dewey
     Ballantine LLP, counsel to the Underwriters.

          (e) That, at the Time of Purchase, prior to the Time of Purchase, no
     stop order with respect to the effectiveness of the Registration Statement
     shall have been issued under the Act by the Commission or proceedings
     therefor initiated.

          (f) That, at the Time of Purchase, there shall not have been any
     material adverse change in the business, properties or financial condition
     of the Company from that set forth in the Prospectus (other than changes
     referred to in or contemplated by the Prospectus), and that the Company
     shall, at the Time of Purchase, have delivered to the Representative a
     certificate of an executive officer of the Company to the effect that, to
     the best of his knowledge, information and belief, there has been no such
     change.

          (g) That the Company shall have performed such of its obligations
     under this Agreement as are to be performed at or before the Time of
     Purchase by the terms hereof.



     4. Certain Covenants of the Company: In further consideration of the
agreements of the Underwriters herein contained, the Company covenants as
follows:

          (a) As soon as practicable, and in any event within the time
     prescribed by Rule 424 under the Act, to file any Prospectus Supplement
     relating to the [Common Stock] with the Commission; as soon as the Company
     is advised thereof, to advise the Representative and confirm the advice in
     writing of any request made by the Commission for amendments to the
     Registration Statement or the Prospectus or for additional information with
     respect thereto or of the entry of a stop order suspending the
     effectiveness of the Registration Statement or of the initiation or threat
     of any proceedings for that purpose and, if such a stop order should be
     entered by the Commission, to make every reasonable effort to obtain the
     prompt lifting or removal thereof.

          (b) To deliver to the Underwriters, without charge, as soon as
     practicable (and in any event within 24 hours after the date hereof), and
     from time to time thereafter during such period of time (not exceeding nine
     months) after the date hereof as they are required by law to deliver a
     prospectus, as many copies of the Prospectus (as supplemented or amended if
     the Company shall have made any supplements or amendments thereto) as the
     Representative may reasonably request; and in case any Underwriter is
     required to deliver a prospectus after the expiration of nine months after
     the date hereof, to furnish to any Underwriter, upon request, at the
     expense of such Underwriter, a reasonable quantity of a supplemental
     prospectus or of supplements to the Prospectus complying with Section
     10(a)(3) of the Act.

          (c) To furnish to the Representative a copy, certified by the
     Secretary or an Assistant Secretary of the Company, of the Registration
     Statement as initially filed with the Commission and of all amendments
     thereto (exclusive of exhibits), and, upon request, to furnish to the
     Representative sufficient plain copies thereof (exclusive of exhibits) for
     distribution of one to the other Underwriters.

          (d) For such period of time (not exceeding nine months) after the date
     hereof as they are required by law to deliver a prospectus, if any event
     shall have occurred as a result of which it is necessary to amend or
     supplement the Prospectus in order to make the statements therein, in the
     light of the circumstances when the Prospectus is delivered to a purchaser,
     not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or not omit to state
     any material fact required to be stated therein or necessary in order to
     make the statements therein not misleading, forthwith to prepare and
     furnish, at its own expense, to the Underwriters and to dealers (whose
     names and addresses are furnished to the Company by the Representative) to
     whom shares of the [Common Stock] may have been sold by the Representative
     for the accounts of the Underwriters and, upon request, to any other
     dealers



     making such request, copies of such amendments to the Prospectus or
     supplements to the Prospectus.

          (e) As soon as practicable, the Company will make generally available
     to its security holders and to the Underwriters an earnings statement or
     statement of the Company and its subsidiaries which will satisfy the
     provisions of Section 11(a) of the Act and Rule 158 under the Act.

          (f) To use its best efforts to qualify the [Common Stock] for offer
     and sale under the securities or "blue sky" laws of such jurisdictions as
     the Representative may designate within six months after the date hereof
     and itself to pay, or to reimburse the Underwriters and their counsel for,
     reasonable filing fees and expenses in connection therewith in an amount
     not exceeding $3,500 in the aggregate (including filing fees and expenses
     paid and incurred prior to the effective date hereof), provided, however,
     that the Company shall not be required to qualify as a foreign corporation
     or to file a consent to service of process or to file annual reports or to
     comply with any other requirements deemed by the Company to be unduly
     burdensome.

          (g) To pay all expenses, fees and taxes (other than transfer taxes on
     resales of the [Common Stock] by the respective Underwriters) in connection
     with the issuance and delivery of the [Common Stock], except that the
     Company shall be required to pay the fees and disbursements (other than
     disbursements referred to in paragraph (f) of this Section 4) of Dewey
     Ballantine LLP, counsel to the Underwriters, only in the events provided in
     paragraph (h) of this Section 4, the Underwriters hereby agreeing to pay
     such fees and disbursements in any other event.

          (h) If the Underwriters shall not take up and pay for the [Common
     Stock] due to the failure of the Company to comply with any of the
     conditions specified in Section 3 hereof, or, if this Agreement shall be
     terminated in accordance with the provisions of Section 7 or 8 hereof, to
     pay the fees and disbursements of Dewey Ballantine LLP, counsel to the
     Underwriters, and, if the Underwriters shall not take up and pay for the
     [Common Stock] due to the failure of the Company to comply with any of the
     conditions specified in Section 3 hereof, to reimburse the Underwriters for
     their reasonable out-of-pocket expenses, in an aggregate amount not
     exceeding a total of $10,000, incurred in connection with the financing
     contemplated by this Agreement.

          (i) The Company will timely file any certificate required by the
     Public Utility Holding Company Act of 1935 in connection with the sale of
     the [Common Stock].

          [(j) The Company will use its best efforts to list, subject to notice
     of issuance, the [Common Stock] on the New York Stock Exchange.]



          [(k) During the period from the date hereof and continuing to and
     including the earlier of (i) the date which is after the Time of Purchase
     on which the distribution of the [Common Stock] ceases, as determined by
     the Representative in its sole discretion, and (ii) the date which is 30
     days after the Time of Purchase, the Company agrees not to offer, sell,
     contract to sell or otherwise dispose of any [Common Stock] of the Company
     or any substantially similar securities of the Company without the consent
     of the Representative.]

     5. Warranties of and Indemnity by the Company: The Company represents and
warrants to, and agrees with you, as set forth below:

          (a) the Registration Statement on its effective date complied, or was
     deemed to comply, with the applicable provisions of the Act and the rules
     and regulations of the Commission and the Registration Statement at its
     effective date did not, and at the Time of Purchase will not, contain any
     untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact
     required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein
     not misleading, and the Basic Prospectus at the time that the Registration
     Statement became effective, and the Prospectus when first filed in
     accordance with Rule 424(b) complies, and at the Time of Purchase the
     Prospectus will comply, with the applicable provisions of the Act and the
     Trust Indenture Act of 1939, as amended, and the rules and regulations of
     the Commission, the Basic Prospectus at the time that the Registration
     Statement became effective, and the Prospectus when first filed in
     accordance with Rule 424(b) did not, and the Prospectus at the Time of
     Purchase will not, contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit
     to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make
     the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they
     were made, not misleading, except that the Company makes no warranty or
     representation to the Underwriters with respect to any statements or
     omissions made in the Registration Statement or Prospectus in reliance upon
     and in conformity with information furnished in writing to the Company by,
     or through the Representative on behalf of, any Underwriter expressly for
     use in the Registration Statement, the Basic Prospectus or Prospectus, or
     to any statements in or omissions from that part of the Registration
     Statement that shall constitute the Statement of Eligibility under the
     Trust Indenture Act of 1939 of any indenture trustee under an indenture of
     the Company.

          (b) To the extent permitted by law, to indemnify and hold you harmless
     and each person, if any, who controls you within the meaning of Section 15
     of the Act, against any and all losses, claims, damages or liabilities,
     joint or several, to which you, they or any of you or them may become
     subject under the Act or otherwise, and to reimburse you and such
     controlling person or persons, if any, for any legal or other expenses
     incurred



     by you or them in connection with defending any action, insofar as such
     losses, claims, damages, liabilities or actions arise out of or are based
     upon any alleged untrue statement or untrue statement of a material fact
     contained in the Registration Statement, in the Basic Prospectus, or in the
     Prospectus, or if the Company shall furnish or cause to be furnished to you
     any amendments or any supplemental information, in the Prospectus as so
     amended or supplemented other than amendments or supplements relating
     solely to securities other than the Common Stock (provided that if such
     Prospectus or such Prospectus, as amended or supplemented, is used after
     the period of time referred to in Section 4(b) hereof, it shall contain
     such amendments or supplements as the Company deems necessary to comply
     with Section 10(a) of the Act), or arise out of or are based upon any
     alleged omission or omission to state therein a material fact required to
     be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not
     misleading, except insofar as such losses, claims, damages, liabilities or
     actions arise out of or are based upon any such alleged untrue statement or
     omission, or untrue statement or omission which was made in the
     Registration Statement, in the Basic Prospectus or in the Prospectus, or in
     the Prospectus as so amended or supplemented, in reliance upon and in
     conformity with information furnished in writing to the Company by or
     through you expressly for use therein, and except that this indemnity shall
     not inure to your benefit (or of any person controlling you) on account of
     any losses, claims, damages, liabilities or actions arising from the sale
     of the Common Stock to any person if such loss arises from the fact that a
     copy of the Prospectus, as the same may then be supplemented or amended to
     the extent such Prospectus was provided to you by the Company (excluding,
     however, any document then incorporated or deemed incorporated therein by
     reference), was not sent or given by you to such person with or prior to
     the written confirmation of the sale involved and the alleged omission or
     alleged untrue statement or omission or untrue statement was corrected in
     the Prospectus as supplemented or amended at the time of such confirmation,
     and such Prospectus, as amended or supplemented, was timely delivered to
     you by the Company. You agree promptly after the receipt by you of written
     notice of the commencement of any action in respect to which indemnity from
     the Company on account of its agreement contained in this Section 5(c) may
     be sought by you, or by any person controlling you, to notify the Company
     in writing of the commencement thereof, but your omission so to notify the
     Company of any such action shall not release the Company from any liability
     which it may have to you or to such controlling person otherwise than on
     account of the indemnity agreement contained in this Section 8(a). In case
     any such action shall be brought against you or any such person controlling
     you and you shall notify the Company of the commencement thereof, as above
     provided, the Company shall be entitled to participate in, and, to the
     extent that it shall wish, including the selection of counsel (such counsel
     to be reasonably acceptable to the indemnified party), to direct the
     defense thereof at its own expense. In case the Company elects to direct



     such defense and select such counsel (hereinafter, "Company's counsel"),
     you or any controlling person shall have the right to employ your own
     counsel, but, in any such case, the fees and expenses of such counsel shall
     be at your expense unless (i) the Company has agreed in writing to pay such
     fees and expenses or (ii) the named parties to any such action (including
     any impleaded parties) include both you or any controlling person and the
     Company and you or any controlling person shall have been advised by your
     counsel that a conflict of interest between the Company and you or any
     controlling person may arise (and the Company's counsel shall have
     concurred in good faith with such advice) and for this reason it is not
     desirable for the Company's counsel to represent both the indemnifying
     party and the indemnified party (it being understood, however, that the
     Company shall not, in connection with any one such action or separate but
     substantially similar or related actions in the same jurisdiction arising
     out of the same general allegations or circumstances, be liable for the
     reasonable fees and expenses of more than one separate firm of attorneys
     for you or any controlling person (plus any local counsel retained by you
     or any controlling person in their reasonable judgment), which firm (or
     firms) shall be designated in writing by you or any controlling person). No
     indemnifying party shall, without the prior written consent of the
     indemnified parties, settle or compromise or consent to the entry of any
     judgment with respect to any litigation, or any investigation or proceeding
     by any governmental agency or body, commenced or threatened, or any claim
     whatsoever in respect of which indemnification could be sought under this
     Section 5 (whether or not the indemnified parties are actual or potential
     parties thereto), unless such settlement, compromise or consent (i)
     includes an unconditional release of each indemnified party from all
     liability arising out of such litigation, investigation, proceeding or
     claim and (ii) does not include a statement as to or an admission of fault,
     culpability or a failure to act by or on behalf of any indemnified party.
     In no event shall any indemnifying party have any liability or
     responsibility in respect of the settlement or compromise of, or consent to
     the entry of any judgment with respect to, any pending or threatened action
     or claim effected without its prior written consent.

          (c) The documents incorporated by reference in the Registration
     Statement or Prospectus, when they were filed with the Commission, complied
     in all material respects with the applicable provisions of the 1934 Act and
     the rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder, and as of such time
     of filing, when read together with the Prospectus, none of such documents
     contained an untrue statement of a material fact or omitted to state a
     material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the
     statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were
     made, not misleading.

          (d) Since the respective dates as of which information is given in the
     Registration Statement and the Prospectus, except as otherwise stated



     therein, there has been no material adverse change in the business,
     properties or financial condition of the Company.

          (e) This Agreement has been duly authorized, executed and delivered by
     the Company.

          (f) The consummation by the Company of the transactions contemplated
     herein will not conflict with, or result in a breach of any of the terms or
     provisions of, or constitute a default under, or result in the creation or
     imposition of any lien, charge or encumbrance upon any property or assets
     of the Company under any contract, indenture, mortgage, loan agreement,
     note, lease or other agreement or instrument to which the Company is a
     party or by which it may be bound or to which any of its properties may be
     subject (except for conflicts, breaches or defaults which would not,
     individually or in the aggregate, be materially adverse to the Company or
     materially adverse to the transactions contemplated by this Agreement.)

          (g) No authorization, approval, consent or order of any court or
     governmental authority or agency is necessary in connection with the
     issuance and sale by the Company of the Notes or the transactions by the
     Company contemplated in this Agreement, except (A) such as may be required
     under the 1933 Act or the rules and regulations thereunder; (B) such as may
     be required under the Public Utility Holding Company Act of 1935, as
     amended (the "1935 Act"); and (C) such consents, approvals, authorizations,
     registrations or qualifications as may be required under state securities
     or Blue Sky laws.

     The Company's indemnity agreement contained in Section 5(c) hereof, and its
covenants, warranties and representations contained in this Agreement, shall
remain in full force and effect regardless of any investigation made by or on
behalf of any person, and shall survive the delivery of and payment for the
[Common Stock] hereunder.

     6. Warranties of and Indemnity by Underwriters:

          (a) Each Underwriter warrants and represents that the information
     furnished in writing to the Company through the Representative for use in
     the Registration Statement, in the Basic Prospectus, in the Prospectus, or
     in the Prospectus as amended or supplemented is correct as to such
     Underwriter.

          (b) Each Underwriter agrees, to the extent permitted by law, to
     indemnify, hold harmless and reimburse the Company, its directors and such
     of its officers as shall have signed the Registration Statement, and each
     person, if any, who controls the Company within the meaning of Section 15
     of the Act, to the same extent and upon the same terms as the indemnity



     agreement of the Company set forth in Section 5(c) hereof, but only with
     respect to untrue statements or alleged untrue statements or omissions or
     alleged omissions made in the Registration Statement, or in the Basic
     Prospectus, or in the Prospectus, or in the Prospectus as so amended or
     supplemented, in reliance upon and in conformity with information furnished
     in writing to the Company by the Representative on behalf of such
     Underwriter expressly for use therein. The Company agrees promptly after
     the receipt by it of written notice of the commencement of any action in
     respect to which indemnity from you on account of your agreement contained
     in this Section 6(b) may be sought by the Company, or by any person
     controlling the Company, to notify you in writing of the commencement
     thereof, but the Company's omission so to notify you of any such action
     shall not release you from any liability which you may have to the Company
     or to such controlling person otherwise than on account of the indemnity
     agreement contained in this Section 6(b).

     The indemnity agreement on the part of each Underwriter contained in
Section 6(b) hereof, and the warranties and representations of such Underwriter
contained in this Agreement, shall remain in full force and effect regardless of
any investigation made by or on behalf of the Company or other person, and shall
survive the delivery of and payment for the [Common Stock] hereunder.

     7. Default of Underwriters: If any Underwriter under this Agreement shall
fail or refuse (otherwise than for some reason sufficient to justify, in
accordance with the terms hereof, the cancellation or termination of its
obligations hereunder) to purchase and pay for the shares of [Common Stock]
which it has agreed to purchase and pay for hereunder, and the aggregate number
of shares of [Common Stock] which such defaulting Underwriter or Underwriters
agreed but failed or refused to purchase is not more than one-tenth of the
aggregate number of shares of the [Common Stock], the other Underwriters shall
be obligated severally in the proportions which the shares of [Common Stock] set
forth opposite their names in Exhibit 1 hereto bear to the aggregate number of
shares of [Common Stock] set forth opposite the names of all such non-defaulting
Underwriters, to purchase the [Common Stock] which such defaulting Underwriter
or Underwriters agreed but failed or refused to purchase on the terms set forth
herein; provided that in no event shall the number of shares of [Common Stock]
which any Underwriter has agreed to purchase pursuant to Section 1 hereof be
increased pursuant to this Section 7 by an amount in excess of one-ninth of such
principal amount of [Common Stock] without the written consent of such
Underwriter. If any Underwriter or Underwriters shall fail or refuse to purchase
[Common Stock] and the aggregate number of shares of [Common Stock] with respect
to which such default occurs is more than one-tenth of the aggregate number of
shares of the [Common Stock] then this Agreement shall terminate without
liability on the part of any defaulting Underwriter; provided, however, that the
non-defaulting Underwriters may agree, in their sole discretion, to purchase the
[Common Stock] which such defaulting Underwriter or Underwriters agreed but
failed or refused to purchase on the terms set forth herein. In the event the
Company shall be entitled to but shall not elect (within the time period
specified above) to exercise its rights under clause (a) and/or (b), then this
Agreement shall terminate. In the event of any such termination, the Company
shall not be under any liability to any Underwriter (except to the extent, if
any, provided in Section 4(h) hereof), nor shall any Underwriter (other than an
Underwriter who shall have failed or refused to purchase the [Common Stock]



without some reason sufficient to justify, in accordance with the terms hereof,
its termination of its obligations hereunder) be under any liability to the
Company or any other Underwriter.

     Nothing herein contained shall release any defaulting Underwriter from its
liability to the Company or any non-defaulting Underwriter for damages
occasioned by its default hereunder.

     8. Termination of Agreement by the Underwriters: This Agreement may be
terminated at any time prior to the Time of Purchase by the Representative if,
after the execution and delivery of this Agreement and prior to the Time of
Purchase, in the Representative's reasonable judgment, the Underwriters' ability
to market the [Common Stock] shall have been materially adversely affected
because:

               (i) trading in securities on the New York Stock Exchange shall
          have been generally suspended by the Commission or by the New York
          Stock Exchange, or

               (ii) (A) a war involving the United States of America shall have
          been declared, (B) any other national calamity shall have occurred, or
          (C) any conflict involving the armed services of the United States of
          America shall have escalated, or

               (iii) a general banking moratorium shall have been declared by
          Federal or New York State authorities, or

               (iv) there shall have been any decrease in the ratings of the
          Company's first mortgage bonds by Moody's Investors Services, Inc.
          (Moody's) or Standard & Poor's Ratings Group (S&P) or either Moody's
          or S&P shall publicly announce that it has such first mortgage bonds
          under consideration for possible downgrade.

     If the Representative elects to terminate this Agreement, as provided in
this Section 8, the Representative will promptly notify the Company by telephone
or by telex or facsimile transmission, confirmed in writing. If this Agreement
shall not be carried out by any Underwriter for any reason permitted hereunder,
or if the sale of the [Common Stock] to the Underwriters as herein contemplated
shall not be carried out because the Company is not able to comply with the
terms hereof, the Company shall not be under any obligation under this Agreement
and shall not be liable to any Underwriter or to any member of any selling group
for the loss of anticipated profits from the transactions contemplated by this
Agreement (except that the Company shall remain liable to the extent provided in
Section 4(h) hereof) and the Underwriters shall be under no liability to the
Company nor be under any liability under this Agreement to one another.

     9. Notices: All notices hereunder shall, unless otherwise expressly
provided, be in writing and be delivered at or mailed to the following addresses
or by telex or facsimile transmission confirmed in writing to the following
addresses: if to the Underwriters, to
_______________________________________________________________, as
Representative, _____________________________________________, and, if to the
Company, to American Electric Power Company, Inc., c/o American Electric Power
Service Corporation, 1 Riverside Plaza, Columbus, Ohio 43215, attention of A. A.
Pena, Treasurer, (fax 614/223-1687).



     10. Parties in Interest: The agreement herein set forth has been and is
made solely for the benefit of the Underwriters, the Company (including the
directors thereof and such of the officers thereof as shall have signed the
Registration Statement), the controlling persons, if any, referred to in
Sections 5 and 6 hereof, and their respective successors, assigns, executors and
administrators, and, except as expressly otherwise provided in Section 7 hereof,
no other person shall acquire or have any right under or by the virtue of this
Agreement.

     11. Definition of Certain Terms: If there be two or more persons, firms or
corporations named in Exhibit 1 hereto, the term "Underwriters", as used herein,
shall be deemed to mean the several persons, firms or corporations, so named
(including the Representative herein mentioned, if so named) and any party or
parties substituted pursuant to Section 7 hereof, and the term "Representative",
as used herein, shall be deemed to mean the representative or representatives
designated by, or in the manner authorized by, the Underwriters. All obligations
of the Underwriters hereunder are several and not joint. If there shall be only
one person, firm or corporation named in Exhibit 1 hereto, the term
"Underwriters" and the term "Representative", as used herein, shall mean such
person, firm or corporation. The term "successors" as used in this Agreement
shall not include any purchaser, as such purchaser, of any of the [Common Stock]
from any of the respective Underwriters.

     12. Conditions of the Company's Obligations: The obligations of the Company
hereunder are subject to the Underwriters' performance of their obligations
hereunder.

     13. Applicable Law: This Agreement will be governed and construed in
accordance with the laws of the State of New York.

     14. Execution of Counterparts: This Agreement may be executed in several
counterparts, each of which shall be regarded as an original and all of which
shall constitute one and the same document.

     IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have caused this Agreement to be
executed by their respective officers thereunto duly authorized, on the date
first above written.

                                           AMERICAN ELECTRIC POWER COMPANY, INC.


                                           By:
                                              ---------------------------------
                                                             A. A. Pena
                                                             Treasurer


- -----------------------------------
         as Representative
and on behalf of the Underwriters
   named in Exhibit 1 hereto



By:
   ---------------------------------

                                    EXHIBIT 1

    Name                                                       Number of Shares