NRG also joined the National Carbon Capture Center (NCCC), an industry-based partnership that focuses on reducing greenhouse gas emissions nationwide through technological innovation, including the development and testing of advanced pre- and post-combustion technologies to capture carbon dioxide (CO2) from fossil-fueled power plants.

"This post-combustion carbon capture project is another important step in NRG's efforts to reduce the carbon intensity of existing fossil fueled electricity production substantially," said David Crane, President and CEO of NRG Energy.

"As we look to further decarbonize our fleet and push to develop and deploy these advanced technologies on a larger scale, initiatives like the National Carbon Capture Center will bring us closer to meeting the challenges of global climate change and transitioning to an environmentally sustainable energy future."

NRG's carbon capture demonstration project at WA Parish will be among the first of its kind and is expected to begin operating in 2013. It will use Fluor's advanced Econamine FG Plussm technology to process flue gas from the plant equal in quantity to that of a 60-megawatt (MW) unit. It will be designed to capture 90% of incoming CO2, or just under a half million tons of CO2 annually - a level that can prove the technology's viability on a larger scale.

Once captured, the CO2 will be compressed using Ramgen/Dresser-Rand technology and used in enhanced oilfield recovery operations, becoming a revenue stream to offset a portion of the cost of the project. Sargent and Lundy LLC is providing engineering support for the project, including innovative approaches to managing the energy requirements of the carbon capture technology.

To help spur further research, development, demonstration and deployment of critical carbon capture projects such as the one being conducted at WA Parish, NRG has also become a partner in the NCCC.

Located at the DOE's Power Systems Development Facility in Wilsonville, Alabama and managed and operated by Southern Company, the NCCC works with scientists and technology developers from government, industry and universities to conduct testing and analyses in power plant settings, at sizes large enough to provide meaningful performance data under real operating conditions.

"Alliances such as the National Carbon Capture Center and the technology we are developing at WA Parish will be invaluable to move technology currently in the lab to widespread use across the industry where we can help meet the challenges of global climate change," added Crane.

"We welcome NRG Energy to the growing partnership at the National Carbon Capture Center," said David Ratcliffe, chairman, president and CEO of Southern Company, which is managing and operating the center for the U.S. Department of Energy.

"Carbon capture is an important component of the diverse portfolio of technologies our nation must pursue to meet our energy and environmental challenges. NRG Energy's involvement strengthens our effort to develop and deploy these critical solutions."

Some of NRG's other efforts to repower with less carbon intensive technologies include:

+ A 2,700 MW of new, zero-emission nuclear generation capacity in development at the Company's South Texas Project location-enough to support more than two million homes;

+ Three wind farms in west Texas, two operating currently and one under construction, totaling approximately 350 MW;

+ About 500 MW of solar thermal power under development in California and New Mexico; and

+ Multiple natural gas plant developments in California, Texas and throughout the northeast.

"At NRG we strive to find solutions to the many challenges we face as an industry," said Crane. "Our hope is that, through a combination of innovation, public-private partnerships and pragmatic and effective climate legislation, we can make these critical projects that will turn the needle on climate change a reality."

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