Old, Polluting Jet Engines Are Being Scavenged to Power Data Centers

The surge in electricity demand from artificial-intelligence data centers has created a market for retired aircraft engines. Companies are removing engines from planes stored in Southwest desert boneyards, modifying them to burn natural gas or diesel, and connecting them to electrical generators. Each converted turbine can produce about 50 megawatts, and developers value them because they can supply power far faster than waiting years for grid connections or conventional turbines. xAI has installed eight such units in Mississippi, while companies working with other major technology firms are also pursuing them. Engine converters and aircraft-storage operators report sharply rising demand, and the Trump administration has encouraged data centers to generate their own electricity.

The rapid solution comes with environmental and practical costs. Converted jet turbines are generally less efficient and more polluting than purpose-built power-plant equipment, requiring more engines to produce the same electricity. Permits for xAI’s units allow higher limits for carbon monoxide and volatile organic compounds than other turbines at the site; environmental groups challenge the permits, question whether emissions were undercounted, and warn of health risks to nearby communities, including a predominantly Black population. Critics also say the equipment’s fuel use, maintenance costs, heat and emissions make it a poor long-term fit. For now, however, the race to power data centers quickly outweighs concerns about efficiency, while federal officials have defended xAI’s generators against legal challenges in the name of AI leadership.