8 converted jet engines are powering xAI data centers as companies look for new energy sources

Elon Musk's xAI is using eight converted jet engine turbines to power a Mississippi data center. While the generators have the required state-level permission and permits, there remain concerns about the impact they could have on the local environment. The permits allow for a 25% higher limit in pollutants known as volatile organic compounds, but those compounds, paired with the expulsion of carbon monoxide, have environmentalists warning that the use of jet engines to power data centers is a step in the wrong direction. The New York Times reports that the Southern Environmental Law Center has already challenged Mississippi's decision to approve the turbines for use at xAI's data center.

The group argues that xAI has failed to provide guarantees that the jet-powered turbines meet emissions standards for specific pollutants, including formaldehyde. It also accuses xAI of what the report terms the "undercounting" of projected emissions in relation to the data center's power sources. This comes after the same group sued xAI over its use of gas generators without the required permits in an area with more than 100,000 inhabitants.

The generators used by xAI are converted by ProEnergy, a Missouri-based outfit that repurposes the unused General Electric turbines that are typically found attached to Boeing airplanes. The company was quick to turn its attention to the possibility of using the jet engines to power data centers after it was identified that the demand for energy was outpacing the ability of traditional utility companies to keep up. Each turbine is capable of producing up to 50 megawatts of electricity. Normally, that would be enough to keep around 15,000 homes up and running.

The availability of energy has long been an issue for data centers, both existing and those still on the drawing board. A July 2026 report predicted that data centers would use 20% of all U.S. power by 2035, a figure that was a huge 83% increase over the same forecast that was made seven months prior. Despite that news, as of April this year, half of data center buildouts had been canceled or delayed due to, among other things, a lack of power. This is an issue for xAI especially, with Musk saying in August that xAI would increase its data center capacity by 7x before the end of 2027. Delays and cancelations have the potential to derail those plans.

Public sentiment around data centers has turned sour in recent months amid power issues and concerns over how much water these facilities use. While using converted jet engines could potentially help with one issue, it seems unlikely that the pollution they generate will help assuage the concerns of locals anytime soon.

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