Nov 6 (Reuters) - American Electric Power ( AEP ) beat

estimates for third-quarter profit on Wednesday, as higher

electricity usage at data centers boosted demand from commercial

customers.

U.S. power demand is poised to rise to record highs by the

end of 2024, backed by growing demand for artificial

intelligence data centers, according to U.S. Energy Information

Administration data.

Columbus, Ohio-based American Electric said its commercial

load - the amount of power used by customers at a given point -

increased more than 10% in the reported quarter compared to last

year.

"We expect commercial load to grow an average of 20%

annually over the next three years based on customer contracts

signed so far," CEO Bill Fehrman said in a statement.

The company, which has about 5.6 million customers in 11

states, also raised its five-year capital plan to $54 billion,

from $43 billion committed earlier.

Data centers could use up to 9% of the total electricity

generated in the United States by the end of the decade,

depending on the adoption pace of GenAI and other technologies,

an Electric Power Research Institute analysis said in May.

AEP forecast 2025 operating earnings in the per-share range

of $5.75 to $5.95, compared with a Wall Street estimate of $5.98

per share, according to data compiled by LSEG.

It reported operating earnings of $1.85 per share for the

three months ended Sept. 30, compared with analysts' average

estimate of $1.80 per share.