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UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 10-K

(Mark One)

For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2004

or

For the transition period from                      to                     

Commission file number 1-16455

Reliant Energy, Inc.

(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in Its Charter)

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act: None

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant: (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes x     No ¨

Indicate by check mark if disclosure of delinquent filers pursuant to Item 405 of Regulation S-K is not contained herein, and will not be contained, to the best of the registrant’s knowledge, in definitive proxy or information statements incorporated by reference in Part III of this Form 10-K or any amendment to this Form 10-K.   x

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is an accelerated filer (as defined in Exchange Act Rule 12b-2). Yes x No ¨

The aggregate market value of the voting and non-voting common equity held by non-affiliates of the registrant was $2,540,701,463 (computed by reference to the closing sale price of the registrant’s common stock on the New York Stock Exchange on June 30, 2004, the last business day of the registrant’s most recently completed second fiscal quarter).

As of March 1, 2005, the registrant had 300,356,819 shares of common stock outstanding and no shares of common stock were held by the registrant as treasury stock.

DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED

BY REFERENCE

Portions of the registrant’s definitive proxy statement for its 2005 Annual Meeting of Stockholders, which will be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission within 120 days of December 31, 2004, are incorporated by reference into Part III of this Form 10-K.

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CAUTIONARY STATEMENT REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION

When we make statements containing projections, estimates or assumptions about our revenues, income and other financial items, our plans for the future, future economic performance, transactions and dispositions and financings related thereto, we are making “forward-looking statements.” Forward-looking statements relate to future events and anticipated revenues, earnings, business strategies, competitive position or other aspects of our operations or operating results. In many cases you can identify forward-looking statements by terminology such as “anticipate,” “estimate,” “believe,” “continue,” “could,” “intend,” “may,” “plan,” “position,” “potential,” “predict,” “should,” “will,” “expect,” “objective,” “projection,” “forecast,” “goal,” “guidance,” “outlook,” “effort,” “target” and other similar words. However, the absence of these words does not mean that the statements are not forward-looking.

Although we believe that the expectations and the underlying assumptions reflected in our forward-looking statements are reasonable, there can be no assurance that these expectations will prove to be correct. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance or events. Such statements involve a number of risks and uncertainties, and actual results may differ materially from the results discussed in the forward-looking statements. Among other things, the matters described under “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations — Risk Factors” in Item 7 of this report could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in our forward-looking statements.

Each forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date of the particular statement and we undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

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GLOSSARY OF TERMS

The following terms are used in this Annual Report on Form 10-K (this Form 10-K):

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GLOSSARY OF TERMS

(continued)

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PART I

General

“Reliant Energy” refers to Reliant Energy, Inc. and “we,” “us” and “our” refer to Reliant Energy, Inc. and its consolidated subsidiaries, unless we specify or the context indicates otherwise.

We provide electricity and energy services to retail and wholesale customers in the United States. We provide energy products and services to approximately 1.9 million retail electricity customers in Texas ranging from residential and small business customers to large commercial, industrial and governmental/institutional customers. We also serve commercial, industrial and governmental/institutional retail customers in the PJM Market. As of December 31, 2004, we had approximately 19,000 MW of power generation capacity in operation or under contract.

Our business operations consist primarily of two business segments:

For additional information, including information regarding our corporate history, business segments and acquisition and disposition activities, see notes 1, 4, 18, 19, 20, 21 and 22 to our consolidated financial statements and “Selected Financial Data” in Item 6 of this Form 10-K.

Retail Energy

Our retail energy segment provides electricity products and related services to end-use customers ranging from residential and small business customers to large commercial, industrial and governmental/institutional customers. The operations of our retail energy segment are primarily located in Texas, which market represented approximately 95% of our GWh retail sales in 2004. In 2003, we began providing retail energy products and services to commercial, industrial and governmental/institutional customers in New Jersey and Maryland. In 2004, we began marketing retail energy to this same segment of customers in other areas of the PJM Market, including the District of Columbia and Pennsylvania. We are currently evaluating entry into additional markets in the United States.

Our retail energy companies purchase electricity in the wholesale power market and arrange for its transmission and distribution to end-use retail customers. In Texas, we purchase our electricity from power generation companies, electric utilities, generation auctions, power marketers and other retail energy companies. In markets outside of Texas, we purchase electricity from our affiliated wholesale energy companies. As part of our business, we are responsible for billing customers and collecting payment. In certain markets, we are required to provide our customers with 24-hour access to customer service centers and comply with various consumer protection rules. As of December 31, 2004, we employed in our retail energy segment approximately 1,000 full-time personnel engaged in marketing, customer service and billing functions.

Residential and Small Business Customers – Services Business

Our residential and small business customer business is primarily concentrated in Texas, where, as of December 31, 2004, we had approximately 1.65 million residential and approximately 193,000 small business customers, making us the second largest retail electric provider in that state. The majority of our customers are in the Houston area, but we also have a growing customer base in other Texas markets, including Dallas and Corpus Christi. For information regarding pricing regulations in the Texas market, see “— Regulation” below.

Commercial, Industrial and Governmental/Institutional Customers – Solutions Business

In Texas and the PJM Market, we market electricity and energy services to large commercial, industrial and governmental/institutional customers, which include refineries, chemical plants, manufacturing facilities, hospitals, universities, governmental agencies, restaurants and other facilities. Based on metered locations, we had as of December 31, 2004, approximately 41,000 large commercial, industrial and governmental/institutional customers.

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As of December 31, 2004, we had related energy supply contracts for such customers of 6,000 MW of electricity in Texas and 1,000 MW of electricity in the PJM Market. The initial terms of our contracts range from one to 51 months, with the average term being 21 months. We also provide customized energy solutions, including energy information services and products, in this market. For information regarding revenues from end-use retail customers, see “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” in Item 7 of this Form 10-K.

Operations Data

The following tables set forth information regarding our retail electricity sales and the number and distribution of our retail energy customers in various markets:

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Wholesale Energy

We have a portfolio of electric power generation facilities. We market electric energy, capacity and ancillary services. Because our facilities are not subject to traditional cost-based regulation, we can generally sell electricity at market-determined prices. We procure natural gas, coal, fuel oil, natural gas transportation and storage capacity and other energy-related commodities to supply and manage our physical assets.

As of December 31, 2004, we owned, had an interest in or leased 50 operating electric power generation facilities with an aggregate net generating capacity of 18,737 MW in six regions of the United States. The net generating capacity of these facilities consists of approximately 34% base-load, 35% intermediate and 31% peaking capacity.

We seek to optimize our physical asset positions consisting of our power generation asset portfolio, pipeline transportation capacity positions, pipeline storage positions and fuel positions. We perform these functions through procurement, marketing and hedging activities for power, fuels and other energy related commodities.

Operations Data

The following table sets forth information regarding our wholesale power generation, purchase and sales volumes:

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The following table describes our operating electric power generation facilities and net generating capacity by region (excluding generation facilities that we retired from service) as of December 31, 2004:

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The following table sets forth information regarding our generation output for our continuing operations by dispatch type and fuel type, including capacity factor, during 2004 and 2003:

Mid-Atlantic Region

As of December 31, 2004, we owned, had an interest in or leased 20 operating electric power generation facilities with an aggregate net generating capacity of 4,979 MW located in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Maryland. The net generating capacity of these facilities consists of approximately 48% base-load, 29% intermediate and 23% peaking capacity.

The following table describes the electric power generation facilities we owned or leased in the Mid-Atlantic region as of December 31, 2004:

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The following table sets forth information regarding our generation output for our continuing operations in the Mid-Atlantic region by dispatch type and fuel type, including capacity factor, during 2004 and 2003:

New York Region

As of December 31, 2004, we owned three operating electric power generation facilities with an aggregate net generating capacity of 2,210 MW located in New York. These assets are primarily intermediate and peaking facilities located in New York City. The net generating capacity of these facilities consists of approximately 50% intermediate and 50% peaking capacity.

The following table describes the electric power generation facilities we owned in the New York region as of December 31, 2004:

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The following table sets forth information regarding our generation output for our continuing operations in the New York region by dispatch type and fuel type, including capacity factor, during 2004 and 2003:

Mid-Continent Region

As of December 31, 2004, we owned nine operating electric power generation facilities with an aggregate net generating capacity of 4,473 MW located in Illinois, Ohio, Western Pennsylvania and West Virginia. The net generating capacity of these facilities consists of approximately 52% base-load, 6% intermediate and 42% peaking capacity.

The following table describes the electric power generation facilities we owned in the Mid-Continent region as of December 31, 2004:

The following table sets forth information regarding our generation output for our continuing operations in the Mid-Continent region by dispatch type and fuel type, including capacity factor, during 2004 and 2003:

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Southeast Region

As of December 31, 2004, we owned, or had an interest in, five operating electric power generation facilities with an aggregate net generating capacity of 2,210 MW located in Florida and Texas. Our interest in two of these facilities (1,104 MW) is in the form of a long-term tolling agreement, as described in more detail below. The net generating capacity of these facilities consists of approximately 2% base-load, 27% intermediate and 71% peaking capacity.

The following table describes the electric power generation facilities we owned or in which we had an interest in the Southeast region as of December 31, 2004: