Invenergy

05/28/2026

In a 2004 bankruptcy proceeding, Invenergy had the unique opportunity to acquire the Nelson Energy Center, an Illinois-based natural gas plant that was only partially completed. Invenergy recognized the project’s long-term value in selling power to the wholesale market, but reviving the operation would prove challenging.

At the time of acquisition, only one out of four intended gas turbines had been delivered and installed. The plant had room for three additional turbines, but this was still more than double what the site needed to operate in its current market.

At the same time, Invenergy had also entered a bidding process to build a gas plant in Ontario, Canada. The equipment otherwise needed at Nelson was exactly what the RFP asked for – a rare opportunity to efficiently turn the efforts and resources at Nelson into an additional energy project in development at the St. Clair site.

Executing this vision required unprecedented coordination, careful deconstruction, and cross‑border planning. By reusing critical equipment already in fabrication or partially installed, Invenergy minimized material waste, reduced new manufacturing needs, and accelerated development of a modern power plant tailored to regional demand. The sister plants of Nelson and St. Clair ultimately became a testament to how flexible thinking and a solutions‑oriented culture can transform complexity into a smarter, more cost-efficient energy outcome.

St. Clair achieved commercial operations in 2009. In 2026, St. Clair has retained nineteen of its original staff members, and as of May 2026, has reached commercial operations on a plant upgrade, significantly increasing its capacity and efficiency.

Nelson restarted construction in 2013 and reached commercial operations in 2015. Invenergy later completed a 380-megawatt expansion to Nelson in 2023, bringing the total generation of the St. Clair Energy Centre and Nelson Energy Center to 1,634 megawatts.

05/22/2026

The Invenergy Services team at the Samson Solar Energy Center in Texas was proud to support the Cunningham and Bogata Volunteer Fire Departments through a donation last month.

Each department received $4,500 to support equipment and resources essential to delivering emergency medical and fire response services across Lamar and Red River Counties—home to Samson Solar.

These volunteer departments play a critical role in serving their communities, and we’re proud to support the work they do every day to keep their neighbors safe.

05/21/2026

The Invenergy Services team at the Gratiot County Wind Energy Center in Michigan was proud to support the Breckenridge Community Schools Educational Foundation through a recent donation.

The foundation helps meet a wide range of classroom and student needs—funding purchases such as AEDs, 3D printers, band instruments, books, and other resources identified by teachers to enhance learning environments across the district.

Invenergy has operated in Gratiot County since 2011, and we’re proud to continue supporting the community alongside local partners like Breckenridge Community Schools.

05/20/2026

Last year, we invested more than $500 million in American communities, supporting jobs, critical public services, and local economies across the country.

This investment, supported by landowner payments, wages and benefits, and state and local taxes, builds on the billions of dollars invested in the communities where we live and work over the last 25 years. We look forward to continuing our support for host communities and helping fund schools, public safety, and essential infrastructure.

https://wwww.invenergy.com/news/invenergy-invested-over-500-million-in-american-communities-last-year

05/15/2026

In Invenergy’s earliest days, success depended on more than vision—it depended on proof.

The early 2000s were a period of rapid change in the U.S. energy market: volatile power prices, shifting ownership structures, and a growing need for scalable, disciplined project development. From the outset, Invenergy’s founding team understood that navigating this environment would require moving decisively when the right opportunities emerged, and exercising patience when they did not.

That opportunity arrived in 2003 with Hardee Energy Center, a 370-megawatt natural gas power plant that began operations in 1993 in rural Florida.

Our founding team, with deep expertise in gas-fired generation and operations, recognized that Hardee was a durable asset in a market still finding its footing. They moved forward deliberately, relying on long-standing relationships with partners and advisors who trusted their technical judgment and disciplined approach to ownership.

For those partners, the plant became an early signal of how Invenergy would operate, from prioritizing long-term performance to adopting innovative staffing structures.

Hardee embraced the emerging trend in the combined-cycle industry of merging operations and maintenance responsibilities into the “O&M Technician” role, creating a multi-skilled workforce capable of supporting both functions. The plant further advanced this concept by extending the multi-skilled staffing model into self-performing major maintenance outages, utilizing craft skills on shift, self-directed work teams, and strong technical ownership of the equipment. This made the team significantly more efficient, reliable, and able to prioritize ex*****on in a demanding energy market.

With its first natural gas asset in place, Invenergy could continue to advance innovative energy operations while strategically expanding into emerging technologies that make good business sense.

More than two decades later, Hardee Energy Center remains in operation and will continue for many years ahead. Its longevity underscores the strategy behind the acquisition and the philosophy that has guided Invenergy ever since: recognize change early, move with intention, and invest in the long-term performance of energy assets.

05/11/2026

The Griffin Museum of Science and Industry’s newest permanent exhibit, “Powering the Future,” is now open to the public.

Invenergy helped bring the exhibit to life through various donations of energy technologies, including a wind turbine blade section from our land-based wind, solar and storage Grand Ridge project, 3 HV transmission line insulators, a safety suit, and an energy storage module.

Invenergy, in conjunction with its advanced solar panel manufacturing facility Illuminate USA, also donated solar components and a full solar panel to the exhibit, contributing to a world-class museum that was recently recognized by Travel + Leisure as one of the top 27 museums in the world.

Pictured: Several Invenergy employees were on hand for the exhibits' opening celebrations last week.

05/07/2026

For Global Volunteer Month, Invenergy employees supported their communities by contributing their time to local organizations across the regions where we live, work and operate.

🔵118 employees volunteered 482 hours in April
🔵884 volunteer hours contributed so far this year
🔵More than $10,000 donated through Global Volunteer Month activities

From food banks to neighborhood cleanups, thank you to everyone who participated in volunteer events throughout April and strengthened the shared value we create in our communities.

05/05/2026

In 1990, engineer and energy entrepreneur Michael Polsky founded Polsky Energy Corporation (later renamed to SkyGen) after experiencing rapid success with his first company, Indeck Energy Services (IES).

SkyGen, which focused on developing large-scale natural-gas power plants, was where Polsky met his future business partner, Jim Murphy. Within a decade, they assembled one of the largest portfolios of gas-fired generation in North America. The company was later acquired by Calpine Corporation in 2000.

The turn of the century was a complex time for the energy industry; a boom in independent power plants led to overbuilding and plummeting electricity prices. Seeing the opportunity to acquire distressed natural gas plants at low cost, and having the commercial and engineering expertise to execute, Polsky launched his third American energy company with Murphy and two other SkyGen executives in 2001. They named the company Invenergy.

Initially, the company had planned to continue focusing on natural gas acquisitions, but market conditions evolved. Polsky and Murphy saw the potential to expand into renewable energy, leveraging the same development, financing, and ex*****on expertise that had driven their previous success. The company would later bring one of Polsky's earliest colleagues from Indeck, Jim Shield, as well as SkyGen colleagues Alex George and Bryan Schueler, to continue the rapid expansion and diversification of Invenergy's portfolio.

25 years later, Invenergy is North America’s largest privately held independent power producer. Under Polsky, Murphy, Shield, Schueler, and many other early executives’ leadership, the company has successfully developed over 220 projects across natural gas, land-based wind, solar, storage, transmission, and manufacturing. It’s an evolution rooted in the instincts that have defined our innovation and ex*****on through periods of profound change in the energy industry.

In many ways, the founding of Invenergy reflects the same entrepreneurial pattern that shaped the trajectory of the industry: identify a shift, move early, and build infrastructure that makes good business sense.

04/29/2026

Our Chicago headquarters recently welcomed nearly 125 children for Bring Your Child to Work Day—an energizing morning of hands‑on learning, creativity, and curiosity.

From engineering challenges to STEAM activities with our impact partner, the Griffin Museum of Science and Industry, our youngest innovators explored how Invenergy powers homes and communities with affordable, reliable energy.

Thank you to the employees, volunteers, partners, and families who helped make the day a success.

04/24/2026