(Bloomberg) -- The activist crusade at NRG Energy Inc. led by billionaire investor Paul Singer has run right into the politics of climate change.
After taking an activist stake in the U.S. power generator, Singer's Elliott Management Corp. and an energy investment firm led by turnaround titan C. John Wilder struck a deal with NRG in February in which Wilder and former Texas regulator Barry Smitherman joined its board. New York City's now fighting Smitherman's appointment, saying his stance on climate change disqualifies him and calling the agreement a “hasty settlement.”
New York City Comptroller Scott Stringer said in a letter to NRG shareholders dated April 6 that Smitherman had described climate change as a hoax, a position that renders him unfit “to serve as a director of a company that, in its 2016 Form 10-K, cites climate change as a material risk.” New York City funds “are substantial long-term NRG shareowners,” with more than 1.27 million shares, he said.
The fight among shareholders is just the latest challenge for NRG Energy, which fired its longtime chief executive officer, David Crane, in late 2015 after investors grew impatient with a money-losing home solar business. Its shares slid almost 60 percent that year. Wilder is now leading a five-person committee to reshape the business that may include selling assets, cutting costs and changing operations.
Smitherman didn't immediately respond to a telephone request seeking comment late Friday. NRG also wasn't immediately available for comment.
Before being joining NRG's board, Smitherman was rumored by media outlets including the Houston Chronicle as a potential pick by President Donald Trump to lead the U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. He served on both Texas's Railroad Commission and Public Utility Commission.
To contact the reporter on this story: Lynn Doan in San Francisco at ldoan6@bloomberg.net.
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Lynn Doan at ldoan6@bloomberg.net, Michael B. Marois
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