New Albany and Gahanna electric customers will see a different name and a redesigned bill when they open their next statement from the utility headquartered in their backyard.

AEP Ohio is officially becoming Ohio Power Company on Thursday, Oct. 1, a change that affects 1.5 million customers statewide, according to ABC 6. The Gahanna-headquartered utility, which also operates a facility on Smiths Mill Road in New Albany, will roll out a new bill format at the same time.

The name change is not entirely new. Ohio Power Company has been the utility's legal name for years. The rebrand puts that name on bills, the website and all customer communications starting in October.

The bigger practical shift is the bill itself. The Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO) approved a redesigned format earlier in 2026 that breaks charges into three visible categories: generation, the cost of the power itself; transmission, the high-voltage lines that carry it; and distribution, the last-mile network along local utility poles. Monthly energy-use details will also appear.

Ohio ratepayers have been paying more. A September Ohio Capital Journal report noted a state Auditor finding that average Ohio energy prices have more than doubled since 2001 and climbed 34% in the past five years alone.

Ohio Power Company president Marc Reitter said in a Sept. 24 company announcement that the redesigned bill will help customers understand which charges the utility controls and which they can manage themselves. "Our role is to safely and reliably deliver electricity and serve the nearly 1,000 communities that depend on us each day," Reitter said.

Ohio Power is classified as a distribution-only utility under state rules. It delivers electricity but does not generate power or profit from energy purchased on customers' behalf.

What stays the same: rates, electric service, account logins, phone numbers, payment options and the mobile app are all unchanged. The company's website will move from AEPOhio.com to OhioPowerCo.com in October, with automatic redirects in place.

Guided walkthroughs of the new bill format for residential and commercial customers, along with a rate-comparison tool and links to payment assistance programs, are available at OhioPowerCo.com/Bill.