How To Shop
As you begin to shop for a new electric supplier, you'll hear some new words and you may be expected to be familiar with some words and concepts you know but may not have used recently. Here are a few of them.

Terms & definitions
CSP and OP: Columbus Southern Power Co. and Ohio Power Co. These are AEP's operating companies in Ohio.

Electric supplier: the company that you can choose to provide the generation of your electricity.

Kilowatthour (kWh): the standard measurement for the amount of electricity a customer uses.

Local electric utility: the company that delivers your electricity to your home or business. In other words, if you're currently an AEP customer, your local electric utility is AEP.

Minimum stay: customers who choose to return to AEP standard service will be subject to a minimum stay requirement; the requirement varies under different circumstances.

Price to compare: the price for an electric supplier to beat for you to save money. You should use this amount to compare offers from competing suppliers.

Service delivery identifier number (SDI): the number you must tell your new supplier when you're ready to switch; it is not the same as your account number. Your SDI number appears on your electric bill.