NRG Replaces CEO After Another Battle With Elliott Over Strategy

For the second time in six years, NRG Energy Inc. is making a big change after activist investor Elliott Investment Management LP objected to the strategy being pursued by the independent US power producer.

On Monday, NRG announced it’s replacing Chief Executive Officer Mauricio Gutierrez following a dispute over the company’s $2.8 billion acquisition of Vivint Smart Home Inc. — a transaction Elliott in May called the “worst deal” of the decade in the power and utilities industry. In 2017, Elliott pushed NRG to refocus on traditional electricity generation and retail businesses, leading to the sale of most of the ...