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Sutter Energy Center

Natural gas power plant · Sutter County, California

Nameplate capacity
636 MW
Rank in California
#30
of 1,897 plants
In service since
2001
July 2001

Details

Primary fuel
Natural gas
Technology
Natural Gas Fired Combined Cycle
Operator
Calpine Corp-Sutter
County
Sutter County
Generating units
3
Share of state capacity
0.59%
Rank among natural gas plants in California
#21 of 309
EIA plant code
55112

Generating units

Individual generating units at Sutter Energy Center
UnitTechnologyNameplateSummerOnlineStatus
CT01Natural Gas Fired Combined Cycle212 MW168 MW2001Operating
CT02Natural Gas Fired Combined Cycle212 MW168 MW2001Operating
ST01Natural Gas Fired Combined Cycle212 MW192 MW2001Operating

Nameplate is the maximum rated output; summer capacity is what the unit can reliably deliver on a hot day, which is typically lower.

Similarly sized plants in California

Russell City Energy CenterNatural gas655 MW
Edward C HyattHydro644 MW
Metcalf Energy CenterNatural gas635 MW
Elk Hills Power LLCNatural gas623 MW

About this data

From EIA’s inventory of operable generators, May 2026 release. Capacity is nameplate — the maximum rated output of the equipment, not what the plant actually generates over a year, which depends on how often it runs. A 636 MW solar plant and a 636 MW nuclear plant have the same entry here and produce very different amounts of electricity.

“In service since” is the earliest in-service date among the units still listed, so a site rebuilt around newer equipment can read as younger than the site itself. All California power plants · What California actually generates