NRG streamlining solar unit, with renewed focus on N.J. some job losses expected

NRG Energy Inc.’s residential solar unit, NRG Home Solar, will continue to do business in New Jersey following a strategic review, albeit after some potential layoffs in the Garden State.The Princeton-based energy company said the review “identified opportunities to streamline and further integrate the business, reduce costs and achieve efficiencies.”

As a result, about 500 jobs will be lost nationwide, NRG said.

NRG spokesman Erik Linden said the company would not be breaking the job reductions down by state, but did confirm some jobs would be lost in New Jersey.

However, New Jersey is also one of three markets the company will be focused on going forward, Linden said.

“NRG Home Solar will now focus on three high-performing markets where our residential solar business has an established foothold — New Jersey, New York and Massachusetts,” he told NJBIZ. “This allows NRG to remain in the residential solar business in a more effective and economical way, continuing to provide the best value to investors and customers and enable the long-term success of employees. As opportunities arise for serving other markets, we will evaluate them on a case-by-case basis.

“We’re excited to retain New Jersey as one of our core states for residential solar. It’s one of America’s top states for solar, and the economics for going solar in New Jersey remain exceptional.”

NRG said the streamlining of its solar unit would create a one-time cost of approximately $20 million in 2016.

“These moves allow us to leverage our expertise in selling and installing residential solar in more concentrated geographic markets where we have an established foothold,” Elizabeth Killinger, president of NRG Retail and Reliant, said on the company’s website. “… This new approach will help us achieve both short- and long-term efficiencies and allow us to effectively remain in the residential solar business in a way that makes economic sense for us and will enable our customers to look to us as the energy provider for their whole home, regardless of the way the power is generated.”

As part of the changes, NRG is also enabling two other companies, Sunrun Inc. and Spruce Finance Inc., to purchase NRG-originated residential solar contracts and provide support for those customers.