PRINCETON, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 1, 2007--NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG) has completed its Long Beach Generating Station repowering on schedule and in time to meet southern California's need for reliable energy. NRG reconstructed this 260 megawatt (MW) gas-fueled plant in less than four months following an RFP process begun last fall in which the California Public Utilities Commission authorized Southern California Edison (SCE) to procure additional peaking and demand-response capacity that could be ready in time for the summer 2007 season.

"A year ago, no one could have predicted we would be in this extraordinary position today, bringing a plant online in such a short time to serve Southern California now," said David Crane, President and CEO of NRG Energy, Inc. "We are proud to be part of the solution to California's energy needs with the Long Beach Station repowering and to have demonstrated our engineering, construction and project management capabilities against such a tight deadline."

Retired since 2005, the Long Beach Generation Station, located in the Los Angeles "load pocket" where power is needed most, will operate under a 10-year power purchase agreement with SCE. The plant, with its fast start capability, can provide power when generation from renewables such as wind and solar are unavailable. The 260 MW capacity of the project is enough energy to supply about 200,000 homes.

"Following last summer's extreme temperatures and record electricity demand, California regulators encouraged Southern California Edison to pursue new power generation projects that could be available by this summer," said Southern California Edison Chairman and CEO Alan Fohrer. "In response to our request for new generating capacity by independent providers, NRG Energy stepped up with this important new project, and has made a significant contribution to Southern California."

Construction on this project began in April and included converting the generating station's seven existing natural gas-fueled combustion turbines to simple-cycle air-cooled units. Additional enhancements included installation of best available emissions control technology equipment to ensure emission levels stay below the stringent requirements of the South Coast Air Quality Management District and elimination of the use of ocean water for cooling.

It is the first project completed under the Company's Repowering NRG initiative - a multibillion dollar plan to build approximately 10,000 MW of new, highly efficient, clean power generation facilities that leverage the infrastructure of NRG's existing facilities, support a diverse fuel mix to reduce energy dependence, and implement best available technologies that reduce the Company's carbon intensity.

About NRG

A Fortune 500 company, NRG Energy, Inc. owns and operates a diverse portfolio of power-generating facilities, primarily in Texas and the Northeast, South Central and West regions of the United States. Its operations include baseload, intermediate, peaking, and cogeneration and thermal energy production facilities. NRG also has ownership interests in generating facilities in Australia, Germany and Brazil.

NRG is a member of USCAP, a diverse group of business and environmental organizations standing together in calling for the federal government to take immediate action to enact mandatory legislation to achieve significant reductions of greenhouse gas emissions. NRG is also a founding member of "3C--Combat Climate Change," a global initiative with 42 business leaders calling on the global business community to take a leadership role in designing the road map to a low carbon society. More information on NRG is available at www.nrgenergy.com.

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 Long Beach Generating Station 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, weather conditions, 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, unanticipated outages at our generation facilities, the inability to implement value enhancing improvements to plant operations and companywide processes, and our ability to achieve the expected benefits and timing of our RepoweringNRG 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.

    CONTACT: NRG Energy, Inc.
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    SOURCE: NRG Energy, Inc.