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Cover and table of contents

UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

Form 10-K

☒ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 For the Fiscal Year ended December 31, 2023.
☐TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 For the Transition period from to .

Commission file No. 001-15891

NRG Energy, Inc.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

Delaware (State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization)41-1724239 (I.R.S. Employer Identification No.)
910 Louisiana Street, Houston, Texas (Address of principal executive offices)77002 (Zip Code)

(713) 537-3000

(Registrant's telephone number, including area code)

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

Title of Each ClassTrading Symbol(s)Name of Exchange on Which Registered
Common Stock, par value $0.01NRGNew York Stock Exchange

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act: None

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act. Yes ☒ No ☐

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Exchange Act. Yes ☐ No ☒

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes ☒ No ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files). Yes ☒ No ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of "large accelerated filer," "accelerated filer," "smaller reporting company," and "emerging growth company" in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.

Large Accelerated Filer ☒Accelerated filer☐
Non-accelerated filer ☐Smaller reporting company☐
Emerging growth company☐

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has filed a report on and attestation to its management's assessment of the effectiveness of its internal control over financial reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (15 U.S.C 7262(b)) by the registered public accounting firm that prepared or issued its audit report ☒

If securities are registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act, indicate by check mark whether the financial statements of the registrant included in the filing reflect the correction of an error to previously issued financial statements. ☐

Indicate by check mark whether any of those error corrections are restatements that required a recovery analysis of incentive-based compensation received by any of the registrant’s executive officers during the relevant recovery period pursuant to §240.10D-1(b). ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Act). Yes ☐ No ☒

As of the last business day of the most recently completed second fiscal quarter, the aggregate market value of the common stock of the registrant held by non-affiliates was approximately $6,266,747,422 based on the closing sale price of $37.39 as reported on the New York Stock Exchange.

Indicate the number of shares outstanding of each of the registrant's classes of common stock as of the latest practicable date.

ClassOutstanding at February 1, 2024
Common Stock, par value $0.01 per share208,021,012

Documents Incorporated by Reference:

Portions of the Registrant's definitive Proxy Statement relating to its 2024 Annual Meeting of Stockholders

are incorporated by reference into Part III of this Annual Report on Form 10-K

TABLE OF CONTENTS

GLOSSARY OF TERMS3
PART I7
Item 1 — Business7
Item 1A — Risk Factors23
Item 1B — Unresolved Staff Comments38
Item 1C — Cybersecurity38
Item 2 — Properties40
Item 3 — Legal Proceedings41
Item 4 — Mine Safety Disclosures41
PART II42
Item 5 — Market for Registrant's Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities42
Item 6 — Reserved43
Item 7 — Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations44
Item 7A — Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk71
Item 8 — Financial Statements and Supplementary Data74
Item 9 — Changes in and Disagreements With Accountants on Accounting and Financial Disclosure74
Item 9A — Controls and Procedures75
Item 9B — Other Information77
Item 9C— Disclosure Regarding Foreign Jurisdictions that Prevent Inspections77
PART III78
Item 10 — Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance78
Item 11 — Executive Compensation78
Item 12 — Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management and Related Stockholder Matters78
Item 13 — Certain Relationships and Related Transactions, and Director Independence79
Item 14 — Principal Accounting Fees and Services79
PART IV80
Item 15 — Exhibits, Financial Statement Schedules80
EXHIBIT INDEX163
Item 16 — Form 10-K Summary167

Glossary of Terms

When the following terms and abbreviations appear in the text of this report, they have the meanings indicated below:

ACEAffordable Clean Energy
AcquisitionThe acquisition of Vivint Smart Home, Inc. by NRG completed on March 10, 2023
Adjusted EBITDAAdjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization
AESOAlberta Electric System Operator
AROAsset Retirement Obligation
ASCThe FASB Accounting Standards Codification, which the FASB established as the source of authoritative GAAP
ASRAccelerated Share Repurchases
ASUAccounting Standards Updates – updates to the ASC
AUCAlberta Utilities Commission
BTUBritish Thermal Unit
BusinessNRG Business, which serves business customers
CAAClean Air Act
CAISOCalifornia Independent System Operator
CAMT15% Corporate Alternative Minimum Tax enacted by the IRA on August 16, 2022
CDDCooling Degree Day
CFTCU.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission
CO2Carbon Dioxide
CO2eCarbon Dioxide Equivalents
CompanyNRG Energy, Inc.
Convertible Senior NotesAs of December 31, 2023, consists of NRG’s $575 million unsecured 2.75% Convertible Senior Notes due 2048
CottonwoodCottonwood Generating Station, a 1,166 MW natural gas-fueled plant
CPPClean Power Plan
CPUCCalifornia Public Utilities Commission
CWAClean Water Act
D.C. CircuitU.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit
DSIDry Sorbent Injection
DSUDeferred Stock Unit
DthDekatherms
Dual fuel customersCustomer that have both electricity and natural gas service with the Company
Economic gross marginSum of retail revenue, energy revenue, capacity revenue and other revenue, less cost of fuels, purchased energy and other cost of sales
EGUElectric Generating Unit
EPAU.S. Environmental Protection Agency
EPCEngineering, Procurement and Construction
ERCOTElectric Reliability Council of Texas, the Independent System Operator and the regional reliability coordinator of the various electricity systems within Texas
ESPElectrostatic Precipitator
ESPPNRG Energy, Inc. Amended and Restated Employee Stock Purchase Plan
Exchange ActThe Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended
FASBFinancial Accounting Standards Board
FERCFederal Energy Regulatory Commission
FGDFlue gas desulfurization
FPAFederal Power Act
FTRsFinancial Transmission Rights
GAAPGenerally accepted accounting principles in the United States
GHGGreenhouse Gas
Green Mountain EnergyGreen Mountain Energy Company
GWGigawatts
GWhGigawatt Hours
HDDHeating Degree Day
Heat RateA measure of thermal efficiency computed by dividing the total BTU content of the fuel burned by the resulting kWhs generated. Heat rates can be expressed as either gross or net heat rates, depending whether the electricity output measured is gross or net generation and is generally expressed as BTU per net kWh
HomeNRG Home, which serves residential customers
ICEIntercontinental Exchange
IoTInternet of Things
IRAInflation Reduction Act
ISOIndependent System Operator, also referred to as RTOs
ISO-NEISO New England Inc.
IvanpahIvanpah Solar Electric Generation Station, a 391 MW solar thermal power plant located in California's Mojave Desert in which NRG owns 54.5% interest
kWhKilowatt-hours
LaGenLouisiana Generating LLC
LIBORLondon Inter-Bank Offered Rate
LSEsLoad Serving Entities
LTIPsCollectively, the NRG LTIP and the Vivint LTIP
MDthThousand Dekatherms
Midwest GenerationMidwest Generation, LLC
MISOMidcontinent Independent System Operator, Inc.
MMBtuMillion British Thermal Units
MMDthMillion Dekatherms
MWMegawatts
MWhSaleable megawatt hour net of internal/parasitic load megawatt-hour
NAAQSNational Ambient Air Quality Standards
NEPOOLNew England Power Pool
NERCNorth American Electric Reliability Corporation
NERC-CIPNorth American Electric Reliability Corporation Critical Infrastructure Protection
Net Capacity FactorThe net amount of electricity that a generating unit produces over a period of time divided by the net amount of electricity it could have produced if it had run at full power over that time period. The net amount of electricity produced is the total amount of electricity generated minus the amount of electricity used during generation
Net ExposureCounterparty credit exposure to NRG, net of collateral
Net GenerationThe net amount of electricity produced, expressed in kWhs or MWhs, that is the total amount of electricity generated (gross) minus the amount of electricity used during generation
NISTNational Institute of Standards and Technology
NodalNodal Exchange is a derivatives exchange
NOLNet Operating Loss
NOxNitrogen Oxides
NPNSNormal Purchase Normal Sale
NRCU.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission
NRGNRG Energy, Inc.
NRG LTIPNRG Energy, Inc. Amended and Restated Long-Term Incentive Plan
Nuclear Decommissioning Trust FundNRG's nuclear decommissioning trust fund assets, which were for the Company's portion of the decommissioning of the STP, units 1 & 2 through the sale of STP on November 1, 2023
NYISONew York Independent System Operator
NYMEXNew York Mercantile Exchange
OCI/OCLOther Comprehensive Income/(Loss)
ORDCOperating Reserve Demand Curve
ORDPAOnline Reliability Deployment Price Adder
PCI DSSPayment Card Industry Data Security Standard
PeakingUnits expected to satisfy demand requirements during the periods of greatest or peak load on the system
Petra NovaPetra Nova Parish Holdings, LLC
PJMPJM Interconnection, LLC
PM2.5Particulate Matter that has a diameter of less than 2.5 micrometers
PPAPower Purchase Agreement
PUCTPublic Utility Commission of Texas
RCRAResource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976
Receivables FacilityNRG Receivables LLC, a bankruptcy remote, special purpose, wholly-owned indirect subsidiary of the Company's $1.4 billion accounts receivables securitization facility due 2024, which was last amended on October 6, 2023
Receivables Securitization FacilitiesCollectively, the Receivables Facility and the Repurchase Facility
RECsRenewable Energy Certificates
Renewable PPAA third-party PPA entered into directly with a renewable generation facility for the offtake of the RECs or other similar environmental attributes generated by such facility, coupled with the associated power generated by that facility
RenewablesConsists of the following projects in which NRG has an ownership interest: Ivanpah and solar generating stations located at various NFL Stadiums
Renewables PlatformThe renewable operating and development platform sold to Global Infrastructure Partners with NRG's interest in NRG Yield
REPRetail electric provider
Repurchase FacilityNRG's $150 million uncommitted repurchase facility related to the Receivables Facility due 2024, which was last amended on October 6, 2023
Revolving Credit FacilityThe Company's $4.3 billion revolving credit facility due 2028, which was last modified on March 13, 2023
RGGIRegional Greenhouse Gas Initiative
RMRReliability Must-Run
RPSRenewable Portfolio Standards
RPSURelative Performance Stock Unit
RSURestricted Stock Unit
RTORegional Transmission Organization
SCRSelective Catalytic Reduction Control System
SECU.S. Securities and Exchange Commission
Securities ActThe Securities Act of 1933, as amended
Senior NotesAs of December 31, 2023, NRG's $4.0 billion outstanding unsecured senior notes consisting of $375 million of the 6.625% senior notes due 2027, $821 million of 5.75% senior notes due 2028, $733 million of the 5.25% senior notes due 2029, $500 million of the 3.375% senior notes due 2029, $1.0 billion of the 3.625% senior notes due 2031 and $480 million of the 3.875% senior notes due 2032
Senior Secured First Lien NotesAs of December 31, 2023, NRG’s $3.2 billion outstanding Senior Secured First Lien Notes consists of $600 million of the 3.75% Senior Secured First Lien Notes due 2024, $500 million of the 2.0% Senior Secured First Lien Notes due 2025, $900 million of the 2.45% Senior Secured First Lien Notes due 2027, $500 million of the 4.45% Senior Secured First Lien Notes due 2029 and $740 million of the 7.000% Senior Secured First Lien Notes due 2033
Series A Preferred StockAs of December 31, 2023, NRG's Series A Preferred Stock consists of 650,000 outstanding shares of the 10.25% Series A Fixed-Rate Reset Cumulative Redeemable Perpetual Preferred Stock, with a $1,000 liquidation preference per share
ServicesNRG Services, which primarily includes the services businesses acquired in the Direct Energy acquisition and the Goal Zero business
SO2Sulfur Dioxide
SOFRSecured overnight financing rate
South Central PortfolioNRG's South Central Portfolio, which owned and operated a portfolio of generation assets consisting of Bayou Cove, Big Cajun-I, Big Cajun-II, Cottonwood and Sterlington, was sold on February 4, 2019. NRG is leasing back the Cottonwood facility through May 2025
S&PStandard & Poor's
STPSouth Texas Project — nuclear generating facility located near Bay City, Texas in which NRG owned a 44% interest. NRG closed on the sale of its interest in STP on November 1, 2023
STPNOCSouth Texas Project Nuclear Operating Company
Tax ActThe Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017
TDSPTransmission/distribution service provider
Texas GencoTexas Genco LLC
TSRTotal Shareholder Return
TWhTerawatt Hours
U.S.United States of America
VaRValue at Risk
VIEVariable Interest Entity
Vivint LTIPVivint Smart Home, Inc. Long-Term Incentive Plan assumed by NRG pursuant to merger between NRG and Vivint
Winter Storm ElliottA major winter storm that had impacts across the majority of the United States and parts of Canada occurring in December 2022
Winter Storm UriA major winter and ice storm that had widespread impacts across North America occurring in February 2021

PART I

Next: Item 1. Business