NRG Energy, Inc. Signs Agreement to Sell Hungarian and Czech Assets to Atel.

Business Editors & Energy Writers

MINNEAPOLIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 11, 2002

NRG Energy, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Xcel Energy (NYSE:XEL), today announced it has reached an agreement to sell its Csepel power generating facilities, its 44.5 percent economic ownership interest in the ECKG power station, and its 75 percent stake in Entrade, an electricity trading business to Atel, an independent energy group headquartered in Switzerland.

The total value (equity consideration and NRG's share of project debt) of the transaction is $525 million. NRG will realize net cash proceeds of $193 million from the sale and will reduce the debt and credit obligations on NRG's balance sheet by approximately $200 million. The transaction, which requires approval by competition authorities, is expected to close before year-end and will result in a book gain, net of transaction fees, of approximately $24 million.

Located on Csepel Island in Budapest, Hungary, Csepel I is a 116 megawatt (MW) thermal plant, and Csepel II is a 389 MW gas turbine power generating station. ECKG, a 343 MW coal- and gas-fueled power station and a 173 MW thermal plant is located in Kladno, Czech Republic. Based in Prague, Entrade markets and trades electricity in Central and Eastern Europe.

"This is our third announced asset sale in the past seven weeks," said Richard C. Kelly, NRG's president and chief operating officer. "We are making substantial progress on our plan to increase cash liquidity and expect to make additional announcements shortly."

As part of a plan to strengthen its balance sheet, NRG announced earlier this year that it planned to market its international portfolio of assets as well as facilities in the South Central part of the United States. NRG has previously announced sales of its interests in Energy Developments Limited, an Australian energy company and the Collinsville Power Station, also located in Australia.

Goldman, Sachs & Co. was the exclusive financial advisor to NRG in this transaction.

NRG Energy, a wholly owned and unregulated subsidiary of Xcel Energy, develops and operates power generating facilities. NRG's operations include competitive energy production and cogeneration facilities, thermal energy production and energy resource recovery facilities.

Xcel Energy is a major U.S. electricity and natural gas company with regulated operations in 12 Western and Midwestern states. The company provides a comprehensive portfolio of energy-related products and services to 3.2 million electricity customers and 1.7 million natural gas customers through its regulated operating companies. In terms of customers, it is the fourth-largest combination natural gas and electricity company in the U.S. Company headquarters are located in Minneapolis.

Certain statements included in this news release are 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. Forward-looking statements above include, but are not limited to, expected earnings and cash proceeds from the sale of assets, the closing on the announced transactions as well as other planned sales, and increasing liquidity. Although NRG believes that its expectations are reasonable, it can give no assurance that these expectations will prove to have been correct. Factors that could cause NRG's actual results to differ materially from those contemplated in the forward-looking statements above include, among others, changes in government regulation or the implementation of government regulations, which could result in NRG's failure to obtain regulatory approvals required to close project acquisitions, and the satisfaction of other conditions required to close the respective transactions, and factors affecting other planned sales include, among others, the availability or cost of capital, changes in interest rates and market perceptions of the independent power generation industry, NRG or any of its subsidiaries.

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 NRG's actual results to differ materially from those contemplated in the forward-looking statements included in this news release should not be construed as exhaustive. For more information regarding risks and uncertainties that may affect NRG's future results, review NRG's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.