LEFT: OG&E crews restored power to 27,000 customers in three days following severe weather and tornadoes in western Arkansas in May 2021. RIGHT: More than 270 OG&E line crew members, vegetation management personnel and support staff helped restore power for the residents of Jackson Parish, La. following Hurricane Ida in August 2021.

OKLAHOMA CITY (Jan. 25, 2022) – Edison Electric Institute (EEI) awarded Oklahoma Gas and Electric Company (OG&E), a subsidiary of OGE Energy Corp (NYSE: OGE), two Emergency Response Awards following power restoration work from the May severe storm in Arkansas and Hurricane Ida restoration efforts in August 2021.

The Emergency Response Awards recognize outstanding recovery and assistance efforts of electric companies following service disruptions caused by extreme weather or other natural events. Award recipients were chosen by a panel of judges following an international nomination process, and the awards were presented during EEI’s virtual winter Board of Directors meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 11.

“Last year brought several significant storms and other extreme weather-related events that impacted many customers and communities across the nation,” said EEI President Tom Kuhn. “OG&E and its employees worked around the clock following the Arkansas wind storms and Hurricane Ida to ensure that power was restored safely and as quickly as possible.”

OG&E’s EEI Emergency Recovery Award is based on the electric utility’s emergency response efforts following a May windstorm in Arkansas when 33,000 OG&E customers in the Fort Smith, Ark. area lost power due to heavy rains, 60-75 mph winds, lightning, hail and three EF-1 tornados – one of which carved a path through Van Buren, damaging homes, businesses and a government building. OG&E crews were deployed to the damaged areas, restoring power to nearly 70 percent of customers within 24 hours.

Later in the year, when Hurricane Ida made landfall on Aug. 29 in Louisiana as a Category 4 hurricane, leaving 904,000 Entergy Louisiana customers without power during the heat of the summer at the storm’s outage peak. Ida’s windspeeds of up to 150 mph damaged thousands of power poles and more than 5,000 transformers. OG&E sent a 270-member team of line workers, contractors, vegetation management personnel and support staff, along with more than 50 OG&E trucks. The crews were dispatched to help restore power for Entergy Louisiana customers, working 16-hours per day for 16 consecutive days. EEI recognized this mutual assistance effort with the EEI Emergency Assistance Award.

“I am most proud of our team’s commitment to restoring power following these significant weather events and appreciate EEI’s recognition of our team,” said Sean Trauschke, OGE Energy Corp. Chairman, President and CEO. “OG&E prides itself on energizing life for the communities we serve and helping our neighbors when we can. We are grateful to the communities we serve each day for their support for our hard-working employees.”

Since 1999, OG&E has received the highest national distinction for emergency recovery 20 times. The company has been recognized 11 times for major storms affecting the OG&E system and nine times for assisting other companies.

“I applaud OG&E and its employees for their unwavering dedication to the customers and to the communities they so proudly serve, and I am honored to present them with this well-deserved award,” said Kuhn.

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About Edison Electric Institute (EEI)

EEI is the association that represents all U.S. investor-owned electric companies. Our members provide electricity for more than 220 million Americans and operate in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. As a whole, the electric power industry supports more than 7 million jobs in communities across the United States. In addition to our U.S. members, EEI has more than 65 international electric companies, with operations in more than 90 countries, as International Members, and hundreds of industry suppliers and related organizations as Associate Members.

About OG&E

Oklahoma Gas and Electric Company, a subsidiary of OGE Energy Corp. (NYSE: OGE), is Oklahoma's largest electric utility. For more than a century, we have provided customers in Oklahoma and western Arkansas the safe, reliable electricity needed to power their businesses and homes with the nation's lowest electric rates, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence. Our employees are committed to generating and delivering electricity, protecting the environment, and providing excellent service to nearly 871,000 customers. OG&E has 7,081 MW of electric generation capacity fueled by natural gas, wind, low sulfur coal, and solar. OG&E employees live, work, and volunteer in the communities we serve. For more information about OG&E, visit us at OGE.com or follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Contact:

OG&E Media Line: (405) 553-3616

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