Climate Policy Engagement Analysis
Climate Policy Engagement Overview: NRG Energy (NRG) exhibits policy engagement that is broadly misaligned with policy pathways for delivering the temperature goals of the Paris Agreement. The company appears to be engaging on US climate policy with increasing negative positions, with evidence of advocacy at the federal level and across several states, including California, Connecticut, Illinois, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Texas. Although the company offers top-line support for federal climate policy, it appears to advocate for a long-term role for fossil gas. NRG is a member of the Natural Gas Supply Association and the Texas Association of Business, which advocate for investments in fossil gas infrastructure.
Top-line Messaging on Climate Policy: NRG offers mostly positive top-line messaging on climate policy. In its industry association climate review published in May 2024, the company appeared to support the Paris Agreement. In its August 2024 sustainability report, however, NRG appeared to favor a market-based response to climate change over government regulation.
Engagement with Climate-Related Policy: NRG takes a mix of positions on climate-related policy. For example, in its August 2024 sustainability report, the company appeared to support implementation of the Inflation Reduction Act’s renewable energy provisions. Meanwhile, according to its 2024 CDP report, NRG criticized the Federal Acquisition Regulation, which would direct federal contractors to set science-based targets to reduce their GHG emissions. At the state level, NRG submitted May 2023 testimony that appeared to push back on Maryland House Bill 910, which proposed to establish energy storage targets.
Positioning on Energy Transition: NRG takes a negative position on the transition of the energy mix and advocates for fossil fuel infrastructure expansion. For example, on a corporate webpage in July 2024, NRG appeared to advocate for the continued role of coal in the energy mix. At the federal level, NRG signed August 2025 comments with the Class of ‘85 Regulatory Response Group that endorsed the Trump administration’s proposed repeal of the power plant carbon standards; previously, in May 2024 comments with the same coalition, the company advocated against a stringent regulation of carbon emissions from existing gas-fired power plants. In Texas, NRG submitted July 2024 comments that advocated for the state’s Firm Fuel Supply Service to include additional sources of gas capacity; a month earlier, NRG published an X post indicating that CEO Cohen met with Governor Abbot to discuss the buildout of gas plants in the states. More recently, in a March 2025 interview with Axios, Cohen called for Texas to build out new fossil gas infrastructure to meet data center energy demands. In New Jersey, the company submitted June 2024 comments that advocated for policymakers to promote fossil gas in the update to the state’s Energy Master Plan.
Industry Association Governance: NRG has published annual reviews of its industry association memberships, however the disclosures do not include detail on the groups’ specific climate policy engagement activities. NRG is a member of the Natural Gas Supply Association and the Texas Association of Business, both of which actively oppose US climate policy and advocate for investments in fossil gas infrastructure.
A detailed assessment of the company's corporate review on climate policy engagement can be found on InfluenceMap's CA100+ Investor Hub here.
InfluenceMap collects and assesses evidence of corporate climate policy engagement on a weekly basis, depending on the availability of information from each specific data source (for more information see our methodology). While this analysis flows through to the company’s scores each week, the summary above is updated periodically. This summary was last updated in Q3 2025.