NRG is apparently going all-in in chasing the "millennial" generation -- the car-sharing, home-eschewing, urban dwelling, debt-riddled constituency that is more concerned with "experiences" than "ownership."

All we can say is: SMH (that's shaking my head, not the more angry meaning).

During an investor presentation yesterday, Steve McBee, President and CEO NRG Home, said that millennials are, "the most important constituency for NRG Home."

NRG also described millennials as, "a transformative force in consumer energy markets."

Call us surprised.

Millennials don't own homes. If they aren't living in their parents' basement, they are living in densely populated cities in multi-family housing.

These properties are generally not the candidates for most of NRG's Home services. Most obviously, apartment-dwelling millennials won't be able to purchase home solar (they could buy into community solar, a service NRG currently offers, but NRG actually did not dwell on that offering yesterday).

In many cases, they can't even buy system power from NRG, meaning they also won't be candidates for up-sells and add-ons, because their dwelling is not individually metered, and the tenant's energy supply (and other home services, particularly maintenance services) are chosen or provided by the building manager.

Then we have the millennials' well-documented aversion to automobile ownership. Although the generation has a reputation for being green-focused, when it comes to transportation, they exercise their sustainable beliefs by using public transit or walking/biking (hence their preference for urban living). When millennials do require a car, they opt for the sharing economy -- either carshare services like Zipcar, or rideshares like Uber or Lyft

The bottom line, millennials aren't running out to buy Teslas and Leafs en masse (and if millennials did buy cars, their financial situation make EVs an unlikely purchase due to EVs' premiums -- fuel efficient microcars with internal combustion are the more likely option).

Then there's millennials' economic situation.

According to Wells Fargo, "Millennials are struggling under the pressure of debt with 42% saying debt is their biggest financial concern currently."

"Four in ten (39%) say they are overwhelmed with debt, compared to 23% of Boomers. Likely due to their big debt obligations, more than half of the Millennials (56%) say they are living paycheck-to-paycheck and are unable to save for the future," the Wells Fargo data says.

"About half of Millennials (47%) are using more than half of their monthly income to pay off various types of debt. Their number one financial concern, following day-to-day bills, is paying off student loans," the Wells Fargo data says.

According to CBS News, "people 25- to 34-years-old had an unemployment rate of 6.1 percent in November. By comparison, adults 35 to 44 -- or Generation X members -- had an unemployment rate of 4.3 percent."

"On top of higher unemployment, millennials are also facing a wage gap, with the median wage for people between 25 to 34 falling in every major industry," CBS reported, citing data from The Atlantic.

That same Atlantic piece notes millennial wages, "are falling behind the cost of basic goods and many are going into debt to pay for a college degree."

And this is despite a so-called "recovery" in the economy (cough).

"The evaporation of real wages for young Americans is a real mystery because it's coinciding with what is otherwise a real recovery. The economy has been growing steadily since 2009. We're adding 200,000 jobs a month in 2014. That's what a recovery looks like. And yet, overall U.S. wages are barely growing, and wages for young people are growing 60 percent more slowly than overall U.S. wages. How is a generation supposed to build a future on that," The Atlantic asks.

Point being, even if the Keynesians tell us the economy improves in the next few years, it won't lead to any appreciable increase in purchasing power for millennials.

However, NRG sees millennials having $3.4 trillion in buying power when their spending eclipses that of Boomers in 2018.

Even if that were granted, what are millennials going to spend that money on?

Smart phones and travel, apparently. And craft beer

NRG said that one-third of millennials are likely to buy "smart energy applications" in the near term, but did not further define that term. We see millennials' uptake of mobile-like solutions, such as Goal Zero, as likely -- but long-term subscriptions (power, EV services) or assets (solar) are another matter, because of the millennial preferences for urban living and rented dwellings noted above.

Millennials love their freedom. YOLO, as they say. One of the reasons they rent. Are they really candidates for a 20-year solar lease?

Data from the U.S. Census Bureau shows the rate of homeownership for those in the millennial generation has fallen to the lowest level in recently recorded history, US News and World Report says.

Of course, the pundits say 2015 will be the year millennials start buying homes in droves as they get older, but we suspect the same thing was said in 2014, and 2013, etc.

But age isn't the key factor keeping millennials from ownership; economics are (even with record low interest rates):

"Blame it on heavy student debt loads and incomes that aren't keeping up with rising home prices --- especially in the urban areas where young Millennials would want to buy," CNN reports

With millennials simply not in a position to purchase the bulk of NRG Home's existing home services, call us skeptical of millennials being NRG Home's most important constituency.

We don't deny the sheer size of the group -- 77 million as cited by NRG -- and NRG's forecast of purchasing power for millennials may be correct. But we don't see their desired purchases aligning with much of NRG's current, or even publicly disclosed aspirational, markets.

However, perhaps NRG is engaged in one of the few marketing strategies that appears to be successful in reaching millennials: flattery.

For the generation which grew up in an age where everyone gets a trophy, traditional marketing doesn't work, but one of the most cited tips to reach millennials is to compliment them during the sales process. In effect, make them feel smart.

Maybe calling them the most important constituency is just an extension of this strategy. Stroke their egos, pat them on the head, and make them feel important.

-- By Paul Ring