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SAN JOSE — Calpine Corp. on Tuesday said third-quarter net income plunged 50 percent as higher fuel and project development costs and falling prices hammered the company’s bottom line. 

The San Jose energy concern Tuesday said profit fell to $161.3 million, or 36 cents a share. It earned $320.8 million, or 88 cents a share, in the same quarter last year. 

The latest results included a gain of $12.9 million, or 3 cents a share, from the sale of discontinued operations. 

The company also booked charges totaling 5 cents a share, including severance and other costs, deferred project-cost write-offs and a loss on the sale of turbines. 

Excluding items, the company said it earned $170.9 million, or 38 cents a share, below its August earnings estimates of 40 cents to 55 cents a share. The results, however, matched analysts’ expectations, according to Thomson First Call. 

Revenue, meanwhile, slipped 1 percent to $2.5 billion from $2.52 billion. 

Fuel expenses jumped 60 percent to $525.5 million, and project development costs more than quadrupled to $23.9 million.