CPower Convenes Industry at GridFuture 2026 to Advance Affordable, Reliable Energy Through Virtual Power Plants

Key stakeholders address accelerating load growth; 3 ^rd Annual Customer-Powered Grid® Awards recognize contributions from customers and partners in support of communities

JERSEY CITY, N.J., Aug. 12, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Today at GridFuture 2026, CPower Energy ("CPower"), a leading virtual power plant (VPP) platform and NRG company, convened more than 300 industry stakeholders to explore ways to improve affordability and reliability with virtual power plants (VPPs), demand response and energy flexibility programs. The third annual thought-leadership conference addressed the accelerating demand growth reshaping the energy landscape from the perspectives of policymakers, regulators, distributed energy owners and developers and commercial and industrial customers.

"Energy affordability and the reliability of our electricity grid are impacting everyone from customers to regulators and require a holistic approach. CPower is grateful to our guest speakers and panelists for sharing their expertise in making electricity more affordable and reliable for consumers and communities nationwide," said Shelley Schopp, General Manager and Chief Operating Officer, CPower.

Speakers and panelists included representatives from the public sector, manufacturing, healthcare, big box retail, data centers, K-12 and higher education, as well as distributed energy developers and technology partners. Topics included balancing growth, reliability and affordability in policymaking, reshaping power markets to meet rapid load growth and combating rising power costs through innovation in distributed energy.

"The industry still needs more generation, transmission and infrastructure investment, but we also need solutions that can deliver value immediately, like virtual power plants, said Scott Hart, Executive Vice President, President of NRG Business. Our long-term success depends on customers, policymakers, regulators, grid operators and energy partners working together to scale the most effective and efficient combination of solutions."

CPower and NRG manage 4,600 customers and 21,000 participating sites across the U.S. and have returned more than $1.5 billion to energy users since 2015 through participation in demand response and energy flexibility programs.

CPower Honors Customers and Partners for Supporting the Grid and their Communities

Also, at GridFuture, CPower announced the winners of its third annual Customer-Powered Grid® Awards, celebrating leading commercial and industrial energy users and distributed energy developers driving meaningful progress in energy management while strengthening the grid, supporting their communities and creating a more flexible energy future.

Grid Champion Award

• Houston Independent School District
• Penn State Health 
• Tishman Speyer Properties, LP
• UMass Lowell

Flexibility Award

• Ameresco – Fort Detrick
• e2Companies

Innovative Solutions Award

• Encycle
• Energy IQ

Community Champion Award

• Danville Utilities (City of Danville, VA)

"Across the 21,000 sites evaluated, the organizations we recognized distinguished themselves through their unwavering commitment to sustainability, operational excellence and consistent participation in programs that maintain grid reliability and keep the lights on for millions of people across the United States," Schopp said.

For more information about CPower and its customers, visit cpowerenergy.com.

About CPower 
CPower Energy, an NRG company, is a leading virtual power plant platform, monetizing the value of customer-sited energy to intelligently strengthen the grid. For over a decade, we have made turning flexible energy into revenue simple for partners and large energy users such as businesses, manufacturers, public institutions and healthcare organizations, paying customers over $1.5 billion from demand response and energy flexibility programs since 2015. Learn more at www.cpowerenergy.com.

Forward-looking statements
This release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Section 27 of the Securities Act, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act. These statements involve estimates, expectations, projections, goals, assumptions, risks and uncertainties, and actual events or results may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements set forth herein. Readers are referred to CPower parent's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including their most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and any subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q for a discussion of these and other important risk factors concerning their respective operations. CPower is not under any obligation to, and expressly disclaims any obligation to, update or alter its forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

SOURCE CPower Energy