NRG Energy's Sustainable Operations Goals and Performance
Published in NRG's 2016 Sustainability Report
NRG always looks for ways to systematically improve environmental and community outcomes from our facilities’ operations while ensuring efficiency, reliability and stakeholder value. Focus areas within Sustainable Operations include safety, GHG emissions and carbon utilization, water, industrial waste and biodiversity.
Our GHG-reduction goals show stakeholders the direction our business is going. Safely providing cleaner power means both increasing our renewable generation capacity and supporting those intermittent energy resources with fast-ramping natural gas plants and by incorporating battery storage and controllable demand.
As we provide cleaner power, we reduce the effects of our operations on our employees, communities and on climate change. Additionally, we create opportunities to reduce our reliance on water to cool our plants and optimize the handling of the waste those plants produce. This helps us realize cost savings while improving the ecosystems and communities where we operate.
NRG aims to be an environmental leader in our industry, and a large part of that is executing on the goals set forth by our environmental compliance team. Such targets include minimizing the impact of conventional generation by investing in environmental controls, repowering our fleet with cleaner technologies and operating our existing plants at or above emissions standards set by environmental regulations.
Conventional generation
One of NRG’s core businesses is wholesale generation. With approximately 42,000 MW of fossil fuel and nuclear generation capacity at 85 plants as of Dec. 31, 2016, we have one of the largest and most diversified power generation portfolios in the U.S.
Realizing the potential of energy requires repowering and refueling our fleet, reducing emissions and providing reliable power for millions today as we explore alternative energy solutions. As of Dec. 31, 2016, less than 25 percent of our consolidated operating revenues were derived from coal-fired operating assets.
In addition to conventional power generation, our wholesale business also includes conventional distributed generation, which consists of combined heat and power, and large-scale distributed generation.
Renewables
By tapping into the sun and harnessing the wind, we provide customers unique and proven sustainable options to power their business operations and personal lives. NRG’s renewables business acquires, develops, and operates and maintains utility-scale wind and solar, community solar and distributed solar generation assets. The business also manages and operates NRG Yield’s renewable assets.
Our renewables business manages a portfolio of assets that span 26 states. The business is also one of the largest solar and wind power developers and owner-operators in the U.S., having developed, constructed and financed a full range of solutions for utilities, schools, municipalities and commercial market segments.
In 2016, we acquired 1,637 MW of utility-scale solar and wind projects and 107 MW of distributed generation and community solar projects currently under development or in operation in 12 states. Apart from assets in operation, at year’s end we held a backlog of in-construction, contracted and awarded projects of 543 MW and a pipeline23 of 3,268 MW across the utility-scale and distributed solar markets.
Download NRG Energy’s Sustainability Report here.
Learn more about NRG Energy’s sustainability initiatives here.
About NRG
NRG is the leading integrated power company in the U.S., built on the strength of the nation’s largest and most diverse competitive electric generation portfolio and leading retail electricity platform. A Fortune 200 company, NRG creates value through best in class operations, reliable and efficient electric generation, and a retail platform serving residential and commercial businesses. Working with electricity customers, large and small, we continually innovate, embrace and implement sustainable solutions for producing and managing energy. We aim to be pioneers in developing smarter energy choices and delivering exceptional service as our retail electricity providers serve almost 3 million residential and commercial customers throughout the country.
