Basis of Presentation and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

We are a wholesale power generation company engaged in the ownership and operation of primarily natural gas-fired and geothermal power plants in North America. We have a significant presence in major competitive wholesale power markets in California (included in our West segment), Texas (included in our Texas segment) and the Northeast region (included in our East segment) of the U.S. We sell wholesale power, steam, capacity, renewable energy credits and ancillary services to our customers, which include utilities, independent electric system operators, industrial and agricultural companies, retail power providers, municipalities, power marketers and others. We purchase primarily natural gas and some fuel oil as fuel for our power plants and engage in related natural gas transportation and storage transactions. We purchase electric transmission rights to deliver power to our customers. Additionally, consistent with our Risk Management Policy, we enter into natural gas, power and other physical and financial contracts to hedge certain business risks and optimize our portfolio of power plants.

Basis of Interim Presentation — The accompanying unaudited, interim Consolidated Condensed Financial Statements of Calpine Corporation, a Delaware corporation, and consolidated subsidiaries have been prepared pursuant to the rules and regulations of the SEC. In the opinion of management, the Consolidated Condensed Financial Statements include the normal, recurring adjustments necessary for a fair statement of the information required to be set forth therein. Certain information and note disclosures, normally included in financial statements prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP, have been condensed or omitted from these statements pursuant to such rules and regulations and, accordingly, these financial statements should be read in conjunction with our audited Consolidated Financial Statements for the year ended December 31, 2014, included in our 2014 Form 10-K. The results for interim periods are not indicative of the results for the entire year primarily due to acquisitions and disposals of assets, seasonal fluctuations in our revenues, timing of major maintenance expense, variations resulting from the application of the method to calculate the provision for income tax for interim periods, volatility of commodity prices and mark-to-market gains and losses from commodity and interest rate derivative contracts.

Use of Estimates in Preparation of Financial Statements — The preparation of financial statements in conformity with U.S. GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, revenues, expenses and related disclosures included in our Consolidated Condensed Financial Statements. Actual results could differ from those estimates.

Reclassifications — We have reclassified certain prior year amounts for comparative purposes. These reclassifications did not have a material impact on our financial condition, results of operations or cash flows.

Cash and Cash Equivalents — We consider all highly liquid investments with an original maturity of three months or less to be cash equivalents. We have certain project finance facilities and lease agreements that require us to establish and maintain segregated cash accounts, which have been pledged as security in favor of the lenders under such project finance facilities, and the use of certain cash balances on deposit in such accounts is limited, at least temporarily, to the operations of the respective projects.

Restricted Cash — Certain of our debt agreements, lease agreements or other operating agreements require us to establish and maintain segregated cash accounts, the use of which is restricted. These amounts are held by depository banks in order to comply with the contractual provisions requiring reserves for payments such as for debt service, rent, major maintenance and debt repurchases or with applicable regulatory requirements. Funds that are expected to be used to satisfy obligations due during the next 12 months are classified as current restricted cash, with the remainder classified as non-current restricted cash. Restricted cash is generally invested in accounts earning market rates; therefore, the carrying value approximates fair value. Such cash is excluded from cash and cash equivalents on our Consolidated Condensed Balance Sheets and Statements of Cash Flows.

The table below represents the components of our restricted cash as of March 31, 2015 and December 31, 2014 (in millions):



	March 31, 2015						December 31, 2014
	Current		Non-Current		Total		Current		Non-Current		Total
Debt service	$	12	$	24	$	36	$	10	$	25	$	35
Rent reserve	2		—		2		4		—		4
Construction/major maintenance	60		17		77		54		17		71
Security/project/insurance	88		4		92		127		5		132
Other	—		2		2		—		2		2
Total	$	162	$	47	$	209	$	195	$	49	$	244

Property, Plant and Equipment, Net — At March 31, 2015 and December 31, 2014, the components of property, plant and equipment are stated at cost less accumulated depreciation as follows (in millions):



	March 31, 2015		December 31, 2014		Depreciable Lives
Buildings, machinery and equipment	$	16,092	$	16,059	3 – 47 Years
Geothermal properties	1,314		1,294		13 – 59 Years
Other	205		203		3 – 47 Years
	17,611		17,556
Less: Accumulated depreciation	5,122		4,984
	12,489		12,572
Land	119		120
Construction in progress	570		498
Property, plant and equipment, net	$	13,178	$	13,190

Capitalized Interest — The total amount of interest capitalized was $5 million and $6 million for the three months ended March 31, 2015 and 2014, respectively.

Treasury Stock — During the three months ended March 31, 2015, we repurchased a total of 9.3 million shares of our outstanding common stock for approximately $202 million at an average price of $21.57 per share. Additionally, we withheld shares with a value of $10 million to satisfy tax withholding obligations associated with the vesting of restricted stock awarded to employees under the Equity Plan.

Acquisition of Fore River Energy Center — During the three months ended March 31, 2015, there were no material adjustments made to the initial purchase price allocation recorded in the fourth quarter of 2014 related to our acquisition of Fore River Energy Center. Although the purchase price allocation has not been finalized, we do not expect to record any material adjustments to the preliminary purchase price allocation nor do we expect to recognize any goodwill as a result of this acquisition.

New Accounting Standards and Disclosure Requirements

Revenue Recognition — In May 2014, the FASB issued Accounting Standards Update 2014-09, “Revenue from Contracts with Customers.” The comprehensive new revenue recognition standard will supersede all existing revenue recognition guidance. The core principle of the standard is that a company should recognize revenue to depict the transfer of promised goods or services to customers in an amount that reflects the consideration to which the entity expects to be entitled in exchange for those goods or services. The standard creates a five-step model for revenue recognition that requires companies to exercise judgment when considering contract terms and relevant facts and circumstances. The five-step model includes (1) identifying the contract, (2) identifying the separate performance obligations in the contract, (3) determining the transaction price, (4) allocating the transaction price to the separate performance obligations and (5) recognizing revenue when each performance obligation has been satisfied. The standard also requires expanded disclosures surrounding revenue recognition. The standard is effective for fiscal periods beginning after December 15, 2016, including interim periods within that reporting period and allows for either full retrospective or modified retrospective adoption with early adoption being prohibited. We are currently assessing the future impact this standard may have on our financial condition, results of operations or cash flows.

Consolidation — In February 2015, the FASB issued Accounting Standards Update 2015-02, “Amendments to the Consolidation Analysis.” This standard amends the consolidation model used in determining whether a reporting entity should consolidate the financial results of certain of its partially- and wholly-owned subsidiaries. All of our subsidiaries are subject to reevaluation under the revised consolidation model. Specifically, the amendments (i) modify the evaluation of whether limited partnerships and similar legal entities are voting interest entities or VIEs, (ii) eliminate the presumption that a general partner should consolidate the financial results of a limited partnership, (iii) affect the consolidated analysis of reporting entities that are involved with VIEs, particularly those that have fee arrangements and related party relationships and (iv) provide an exception for certain types of entities. This standard is effective for fiscal periods beginning after December 15, 2015, including interim periods within that reporting period and allows for either full retrospective or modified retrospective adoption with early adoption permitted. We are currently assessing the future impact this standard may have but do not anticipate a material impact on our financial condition, results of operations or cash flows.

Debt Issuance Costs — In April 2015, the FASB issued Accounting Standards Update 2015-03, “Simplifying the Presentation of Debt Issuance Costs.” The standard requires debt issuance costs related to a recognized debt liability to be presented in the balance sheet as a direct deduction from the carrying amount of that debt liability, which is consistent with the presentation of debt discounts. The standard is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2015, including interim periods within that reporting period and requires retrospective adoption with early adoption permitted. We do not anticipate a material impact on our financial condition, results of operations or cash flows as a result of adopting this standard.

Cloud Computing Arrangements — In April 2015, the FASB issued Accounting Standards Update 2015-05, “Customer’s Accounting for Fees Paid in a Cloud Computing Arrangement.” This standard provides guidance regarding whether a cloud computing arrangement represents a software license or a service contract. The standard is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2015, including interim periods and allows for either prospective or retrospective adoption with early adoption permitted. We are currently assessing the future impact this standard may have on our financial condition, results of operations or cash flows.