— Event commemorates completion of 26 MW Solar Photovoltaic Facility in San Diego County providing consumers with cleaner energy choices —

CARLSBAD, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Apr. 26, 2013-- NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE: NRG), through its wholly owned subsidiary NRG Solar, will co-host a ribbon-cutting event later this morning to commemorate the completion of the NRG Solar Borrego I Project in Borrego Springs.

Located 90 miles east of San Diego, the 26 megawatt (AC) solar photovoltaic facility started commercial operations in February 2013 and is currently producing clean, renewable electricity for SDG&E customers. At full capacity, Borrego can generate enough power to meet the energy demands of approximately 20,800 homes. This means that the facility can potentially avoid the emission of 33,000 tons of carbon into the atmosphere, the equivalent of taking 6,000 cars off the road.

“As our first utility-scale solar facility providing power to San Diego County, the opening of Borrego marks a major milestone in NRG Solar’s energy portfolio,” said Randy Hickok, senior vice president of NRG Solar. “In addition to helping boost the local economy with 250 construction jobs, the facility will contribute to cleaner air and less water consumption than the land’s previous usage. We look forward to working with SDG&E in building a sustainable future for Southern California residents.”

Electricity produced at Borrego is being sold to SDG&E under a 25-year power purchase agreement. In addition to the economic and environmental benefits to the local community, it also provides the State of California with a new source of renewable energy to help achieve Renewable Portfolio Standards.

Borrego is one of eight large-scale photovoltaic solar facilities owned or co-owned by NRG that currently produces clean solar power for thousands of homes and businesses in three states. The other seven completed or partially completed plants are Agua Caliente (under construction) and Avra Valley in Arizona; Roadrunner in New Mexico; and Avenal, Blythe, Alpine and California Valley Solar Ranch (under construction) in California.

About NRG and NRG Solar

NRG is at the forefront of changing how people think about and use energy. We deliver cleaner and smarter energy choices for our customers, backed by the nation’s largest independent power generation portfolio of fossil fuel, nuclear, solar and wind facilities. A Fortune 300 company, NRG is challenging the U.S. energy industry by becoming the largest developer of solar power, building the first privately-funded electric vehicle charging infrastructure, and providing customers with the most advanced smart energy solutions to better manage their energy use. In addition to 47,000 megawatts of generation capacity, enough to supply nearly 40 million homes, our retail electricity providers – Reliant, Green Mountain Energy and Energy Plus – serve more than two million customers. More information is available at www.nrgenergy.com. Connect with NRG Energy on Facebook and follow us on Twitter @nrgenergy.

NRG Solar LLC, a subsidiary of NRG, has more than 2,000 MW of photovoltaic and solar thermal projects in operation, under construction or in development across the southwestern United States. More information is available at www.nrgsolar.com.

NRG Safe Harbor Disclosure

This news release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Such forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions and include NRG’s expectations regarding the Company’s Borrego solar project and forward-looking statements typically can be identified by the use of words such as “will,” “expect,” “believe,” and similar terms. Although NRG believes that its expectations are reasonable, it can give no assurance that these expectations will prove to have been correct, and actual results may vary materially. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contemplated above include, among others, general economic conditions, hazards customary in the power industry, competition in wholesale power markets, the volatility of energy and fuel prices, failure of customers to perform under contracts, changes in the wholesale power markets, changes in government regulation of markets and of environmental emissions, and our ability to achieve the expected benefits and timing of our electric vehicle projects. NRG undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. The foregoing review of factors that could cause NRG’s actual results to differ materially from those contemplated in the forward-looking statements included in this news release should be considered in connection with information regarding risks and uncertainties that may affect NRG’s future results included in NRG’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission at www.sec.gov.

Source: NRG Energy, Inc.

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