How it started
1984–1999
In 1984, Calpine was founded in Silicon Valley, California. Peter Cartwright and four of his co-workers, the Guy F. Atkinson Construction Company of South San Francisco, and the Electrowatt Corporation struck an investment arrangement. With initial capital of US$1 million, it was essentially a Silicon Valley startup company. In 1988, the first QF cogeneration plant was commissioned and power production began.
The name "Calpine" is derived from the company's original California location and alpine, a reference to the Zürich home base of Electrowatt. Electrowatt provided essential assistance when Calpine was a startup.
In 1988, the first QF cogeneration plant was commissioned and power production began. In 1992, the company's assets reached US$21 billion. In 1994, the company reached capacity output of 141 MegaWatts. In 1996, the company's initial public offering was the largest for an independent energy company.
In 1999, Calpine bought PG&E's holdings at The Geysers, acquiring most of the geothermal complex. The Houston-based company operates 15 plants and produces about 725 megawatts.
2000–2020
From Wikipedia’s article on Calpine, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.2