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NRG Energy to Acquire Phoenix District Energy Company

^{Published on 2010-05-13 13:15:51 - Market Wire}
 

PRINCETON, N.J.--([ BUSINESS WIRE ])--NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE: NRG), through its NRG Thermal LLC subsidiary, has reached agreement with APS Energy Services Company, Inc., a subsidiary of Pinnacle West Capital Corp. (NYSE: PNW), to acquire its wholly owned subsidiary, Northwind Phoenix LLC.

"NRG has been expanding its alternative energy business, and Northwind Phoenix is an ideal opportunity, with its strong customer base and exceptional reliability record"

Northwind Phoenix owns and operates one of the newest district cooling systems in the U.S., providing chilled water to commercial buildings in the Phoenix central business district. Customers include office complexes, municipalities, universities and sport complexes that are contracted through long-term service agreements.

aNRG has been expanding its alternative energy business, and Northwind Phoenix is an ideal opportunity, with its strong customer base and exceptional reliability record,a said Bob Henry, NRGa™s Senior Vice President of Business Operations. aNorthwind Phoenix delivers highly efficient energy services that nicely complement our existing thermal fleet and increases NRGa™s presence in the Southwest.a

In addition to the local business district, Northwind also maintains and operates Combined Heat and Power (CHP) plants that provide chilled water, steam and electricity to portions of Arizona State University campuses in Tempe and Mesa, and in metropolitan Tucson, including that citya™s convention center.

aWith ideal locations and modern infrastructure, the growth prospects are exceptional,a added Michael Carroll, President of NRGa™s Thermal division. aNorthwinda™s central Phoenix business base is on an upward trend as customers recognize the significant benefits associated with district energya"reliability, high-quality service, simplified operations and lower capital costs.a

The transaction is expected to close in June 2010, pending receipt of Hart-Scott-Rodino approval.

About NRG

NRG Energy, Inc., a Fortune 500 and S&P 500 Index company, owns and operates one of the countrya™s largest and most diverse power generation portfolios. Headquartered in Princeton, NJ, the Companya™s power plants provide more than 24,000 megawatts of generation capacitya"enough to supply more than 20 million homes. NRGa™s retail business, Reliant Energy, serves 1.6 million residential, business, commercial and industrial customers in Texas. A past recipient of the energy industrya™s highest honorsa"Platts Industry Leadership and Energy Company of the Year awards, NRG is a member of the U.S. Climate Action Partnership (USCAP), a group of business and environmental organizations calling for mandatory legislation to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. More information is available at [ www.nrgenergy.com ].

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 expectations regarding NRGa™s thermal business and other benefits of the acquisition and typically can be identified by the use of words such as awill,a aexpect,a aestimate,a aanticipate,a aforecast,a aplan,a abelievea 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, the volatility of energy and fuel prices, failure of customers to perform under contracts, construction delays, changes in government regulation of markets and of environmental emissions, the condition of capital markets generally, and our ability to access capital markets.

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 NRGa™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 NRGa™s future results included in NRGa™s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission at [ www.sec.gov ].