The Metcalf Energy Center is a 600-megawatt power generation facility built by San Jose-based Calpine Corporation. It utilizes natural gas for fuel and is one of the cleanest, most efficient facilities of its kind in the world.

The Metcalf Energy Center is located in South San Jose, off Monterey Road, across from the existing 40-acre PG&E substation and the existing natural gas lines that run along HIghway 101. The total site, including the plant site, the landscape buffer and the access road, is a 20-acre parcel of flat land at the base of Tulare Hill.

To initiate the rigorous technical and environmental application review process, Calpine submitted detailed environmental reports to the California Energy Commission (CEC) on April 30, 1999. Copies of the full reports are available at local libraries. These reports included the benfits and impacts that the facility would have on every aspect of the environment, including air and water quality, noise and traffic. The reports also included plans to mitigate any adverse impacts. After conducting more than fifty public meetings, the CEC rendered their decision to grant a license for the project on September 24, 2001 and construction began in 2002. In June 2005, the Metcalf Energy Center came online, delivering up to 600 megawatts of power to the northern California power market.