AI Data Centers Face Power Crunch as Retired Jet Engines Become Stopgap Solution
nashnova research
Some AI data centers are converting retired jet engines into gas-fired generators because connecting to the grid can take up to seven years — a sign the power bottleneck is forcing Big Tech to build its own electricity supply.
Why would a data center use a jet engine?
One reason: speed. Connecting 100 MW to the grid in northern Virginia takes roughly seven years, per the IEA. A Mitsubishi Power executive said most new generation capacity won't come online until 2031.
In plain terms = the grid is expanding far too slowly for AI's appetite.
Converted jet-engine turbines cut that timeline to under two years. Rystad Energy analyst Audun Martinsen put it simply: "It's all about getting power as fast as possible."
Who is already doing this?
Elon Musk's xAI moved first — installing eight repurposed turbines in Mississippi to power its Colossus 2 data center in Memphis. The units come from ProEnergy, which converts GE engines commonly found on Boeing aircraft.
OpenAI followed in 2025, deploying gas turbines at its first Stargate site in Abilene, Texas. Crusoe, the Denver startup building that campus, ordered 13 ProEnergy units in April.
Crusoe walked away from a $1.25 billion deal to buy 29 turbines from supersonic-jet startup Boom Supersonic in September, but said it still plans to use the turbine approach.
What damage has the power shortage already caused?
Last month Microsoft pulled out of a lead-tenant agreement at Nscale's data center in Loughton, England.
The reason was blunt: the local utility said it could not deliver enough power until the early-to-mid 2030s.
This reflects a bottleneck that is no longer just slowing expansion — it is killing existing contracts.
Can this solution last?
Converted jet engines are less efficient and more polluting than purpose-built power-plant turbines; more units are needed for the same output.
Some experts expect the appeal to fade within a year or two as efficiency and environmental standards tighten.
In plain terms = jet-engine power is an emergency fix, not a long-term prescription. The Trump administration is actively encouraging on-site generation at data centers, which will accelerate the trend short-term — but environmental pressure will eventually cap its scale.
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