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v3.22.1

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies (Policies) | 3 Months Ended
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Mar. 31, 2022
Accounting Policies [Abstract] |
Use of Estimates | Use of EstimatesThe preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements, disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements, and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. Actual results could differ from these estimates.
Reclassifications | ReclassificationsCertain prior period amounts have been reclassified for comparative purposes. The reclassifications did not affect consolidated results from operations, net assets or consolidated cash flows
Credit Losses | Credit Losses Retail trade receivables are reported on the balance sheet net of the allowance for credit losses. The Company accrues a provision for current expected credit losses based on (i) estimates of uncollectible revenues by analyzing accounts receivable aging and current and reasonable forecasts of expected economic factors including, but not limited to, unemployment rates and weather-related events, (ii) historical collections and delinquencies, and (iii) counterparty credit ratings for commercial and industrial customers.
Restricted Cash | Funds deposited by counterparties consist of cash held by the Company as a result of collateral posting obligations from its counterparties related to NRG's hedging program. The increase in funds deposited by counterparties is driven by the significant increase in forward positions as a result of increases in natural gas and power prices. Though some amounts are segregated into separate accounts, not all funds are contractually restricted. Based on the Company's intention, these funds are not available for the payment of general corporate obligations; however, they are available for liquidity management. Depending on market fluctuations and the settlement of the underlying contracts, the Company will refund this collateral to the counterparties pursuant to the terms and conditions of the underlying trades. Since collateral requirements fluctuate daily and the Company cannot predict if any collateral will be held for more than twelve months, the funds deposited by counterparties are classified as a current asset on the Company's balance sheet, with an offsetting liability for this cash collateral received within current liabilities. Restricted cash consists primarily of funds held to satisfy the requirements of certain debt agreements and funds held within the Company's projects that are restricted in their uses.
Winter Storm Uri Uplift Securitization Proceeds | Winter Storm Uri Uplift Securitization Proceeds The Texas Legislature passed House Bill ("HB") 4492 in May of 2021 for ERCOT to mitigate exceptionally high price adders and ancillary service costs incurred by LSEs during Winter Storm Uri. HB 4492 authorized ERCOT to obtain $2.1 billion of financing to distribute to LSEs that were charged and paid to ERCOT those highly priced ancillary service and ORDPA during Winter Storm Uri. In December 2021, ERCOT filed with the PUCT a calculation of each LSE’s share of proceeds based on the settlement methodology. The Company accounted for the proceeds it will receive by analogy to the contribution model within ASC 958-605, Not-for-Profit Entities- Revenue Recognition and the grant model within IAS 20, Accounting for Government Grants and Disclosure of Government Assistance, as a reduction to cost of operations within its consolidated statements of operations in the 2021 annual period for which the proceeds were intended to compensate. The Company expects to receive proceeds of $689 million from ERCOT in the second quarter of 2022 which is reflected as a receivable on its consolidated balance sheets.
Recent Accounting Developments | Recent Accounting Developments - Guidance Adopted in 2022 ASU 2020-06 — In August 2020, the FASB issued ASU No. 2020-06, Debt - Debt with Conversion and Other Options (Subtopic 470-20) and Derivatives and Hedging - Contracts in Entity’s Own Equity (Subtopic 815-40), or ASU 2020-06. The guidance in ASU 2020-06 reduces the number of accounting models for convertible debt instruments and convertible preferred stock. In addition, ASU 2020-06 improves and amends the related earnings per share guidance. The Company adopted this standard on January 1, 2022 using the modified retrospective approach. As a result of the provisions of the amended guidance, the Company recorded a $100 million decrease to additional paid-in capital, a $57 million decrease to debt discount, a $57 million increase to retained earnings and a $14 million decrease to long-term deferred tax liabilities. The adoption of ASU 2020-06 did not have a material impact on the Company's statement of operations, statement of cash flow or earnings per share amounts.
Nuclear Decommissioning | NRG's Nuclear Decommissioning Trust Fund assets, which are for the decommissioning of its 44% interest in STP, are comprised of securities classified as available-for-sale and recorded at fair value based on actively quoted market prices. NRG accounts for the Nuclear Decommissioning Trust Fund in accordance with ASC 980, Regulated Operations, because the Company's nuclear decommissioning activities are subject to approval by the PUCT with regulated rates that are designed to recover all decommissioning costs and that can be charged to and collected from the ratepayers per PUCT mandate. Since the Company is in compliance with PUCT rules and regulations regarding decommissioning trusts and the cost of decommissioning is the responsibility of the Texas ratepayers, not NRG, all realized and unrealized gains or losses (including other-than-temporary impairments) related to the Nuclear Decommissioning Trust Fund are recorded to the Nuclear Decommissioning Trust liability and are not included in net income or accumulated OCI, consistent with regulatory treatment.
Segment Reporting | The Company’s segment structure reflects how management currently makes financial decisions and allocates resources. The Company manages its operations based on the combined results of the retail and wholesale generation businesses with a geographical focus. NRG’s chief operating decision maker, its chief executive officer, evaluates the performance of its segments based on operational measures including adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, or Adjusted EBITDA, free cash flow and allocation of capital, as well as net income/(loss).

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- Definition Entity's cash and cash equivalents accounting policy with respect to restricted balances. Restrictions may include legally restricted deposits held as compensating balances against short-term borrowing arrangements, contracts entered into with others, or company statements of intention with regard to particular deposits; however, time deposits and short-term certificates of deposit are not generally included in legally restricted deposits. + References Reference 1: http://fasb.org/us-gaap/role/ref/legacyRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 942 -SubTopic 210 -Section S99 -Paragraph 1 -Subparagraph (SX 210.9-03(1)(a)) -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=120398452&loc=d3e534808-122878 Reference 2: http://fasb.org/us-gaap/role/ref/legacyRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 210 -SubTopic 10 -Section S99 -Paragraph 1 -Subparagraph (SX 210.5-02(1)) -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=120391452&loc=d3e13212-122682 Reference 3: http://fasb.org/us-gaap/role/ref/legacyRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 230 -SubTopic 10 -Section 50 -Paragraph 1 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=123431023&loc=d3e4273-108586 + Details
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- Definition Disclosure of accounting policy for credit loss on financial instrument measured at amortized cost basis, net investment in lease, off-balance sheet credit exposure, and available-for-sale debt security. Includes, but is not limited to, methodology used to estimate allowance for credit loss, how writeoff of uncollectible amount is recognized, and determination of past due status and nonaccrual status. + References Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 326 -SubTopic 30 -Section 35 -Paragraph 7A -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=125515542&loc=SL120269220-210453 Reference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 326 -SubTopic 20 -Section 50 -Paragraph 3D -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=124255953&loc=SL120267969-210447 Reference 3: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 326 -SubTopic 30 -Section 50 -Paragraph 7 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=124269663&loc=SL82922895-210455 Reference 4: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 326 -SubTopic 30 -Section 35 -Paragraph 13A -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=125515542&loc=SL120267917-210453 Reference 5: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 326 -SubTopic 20 -Section 35 -Paragraph 8A -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=124266218&loc=SL120267834-210445 Reference 6: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 326 -SubTopic 20 -Section 30 -Paragraph 4A -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=124256539&loc=SL120269210-210444 Reference 7: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 326 -SubTopic 20 -Section 50 -Paragraph 17 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=124255953&loc=SL82919260-210447 Reference 8: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 326 -SubTopic 20 -Section 45 -Paragraph 5 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=124255206&loc=SL120267845-210446 Reference 9: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 326 -SubTopic 20 -Section 50 -Paragraph 14 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=124255953&loc=SL82919253-210447 Reference 10: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 326 -SubTopic 20 -Section 50 -Paragraph 21 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=124255953&loc=SL82919272-210447 Reference 11: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 326 -SubTopic 20 -Section 30 -Paragraph 5A -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=124256539&loc=SL120254536-210444 Reference 12: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 326 -SubTopic 20 -Section 50 -Paragraph 3C -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=124255953&loc=SL120267966-210447 Reference 13: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 326 -SubTopic 30 -Section 30 -Paragraph 1B -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=124268681&loc=SL120267897-210452 Reference 14: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 326 -SubTopic 20 -Section 50 -Paragraph 11 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=124255953&loc=SL82919244-210447 Reference 15: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 326 -SubTopic 30 -Section 50 -Paragraph 3D -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=124269663&loc=SL120267862-210455 Reference 16: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 326 -SubTopic 20 -Section S99 -Paragraph 1 -Subparagraph (SAB Topic 6.M.Q4) -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=122651532&loc=SL122037091-237805 Reference 17: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 326 -SubTopic 30 -Section 50 -Paragraph 3C -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=124269663&loc=SL120267859-210455 Reference 18: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 326 -SubTopic 30 -Section 50 -Paragraph 3A -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=124269663&loc=SL120267853-210455 + Details
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- Definition Disclosure of accounting policy for reclassification affecting comparability of financial statement. Excludes amendment to accounting standards, other change in accounting principle, and correction of error. + References Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2009/role/commonPracticeRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 205 -SubTopic 10 -Section 50 -Paragraph 1 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=124429488&loc=d3e326-107755 + Details
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