Dive Brief:

• NRG Energy on Aug. 7 reported a net loss of $97 million for the second quarter of 2014. The company said a mild spring and early summer were partly to blame for the loss.
• "Never before in my 11 years at NRG do I recall a first half of the year where we were so whipsawed by the weather," CEO David Crane said during an earnings call with investors and analysts.
• NRG's revenue rose almost $692 million in the quarter, but those gains were offset by a $890 million rise in operating costs.

Dive Insight:

While mild weather seriously impacted the company's earnings, officials say they are confident that a return to more seasonable temperatures and results is on the horizon.

"The weather forecast for next week looks better as temperatures will move into a normal range, pushing 100 degrees in several Texas cities," Mauricio Gutierrez, chief operating officer and executive vice president of NRG, said during the earnings call. The second quarter was 8% cooler than the 10-year average, he added, "and so far this summer, we have not seen a single day above 100 degrees in Houston."

The operating reserve demand curve (ORDC), aimed at giving more accurate price formation signals during scarcity events, has so far been a "major disappointment," Gutierrez said. The adder has averaged less than 10 cents per megawatt-hour across all hours through July, but he said "we believe there is plenty of time still for ORDC to be of some value this summer."