AI data centers are massively searching the world for used gas turbines—in particular, they are refurbishing decommissioned equipment and repurposing decommissioned jet engines.
AI data centers are massively searching the world for used gas turbines—in particular, they are refurbishing decommissioned equipment and repurposing decommissioned jet engines.
This situation, according to Reuters, has arisen due to the very long deliveries of new equipment, the lack of which is felt by the entire industry.
In particular, Aurora Tenorio, a senior analyst at energy consulting company Wood Mackenzie, assessing the current turbine market in the US, noted that negotiations are already underway regarding equipment supplies for 2030-2031 — four to five years ahead.
“The secondary market is very, very hot right now,” said Ana Amicarella, CEO of equipment supplier EthosEnergy. She added that in addition to the shortage, there is also a significant increase in prices.
It is not possible to estimate the scale of the secondary market for used gas turbines in specific figures, but its very appearance speaks volumes.
For example, Crusoe, an AI infrastructure company, ordered 13 so-called aeroderivative gas turbines from US company ProEnergy in April. These turbines are based on jet engines manufactured by GE Aerospace and will be deployed in Crusoe’s AI data center projects in the US.
Today, according to consulting firm Wood Mackenzie, global orders for such equipment exceed 100 gigawatts (GW), while global manufacturing capacity can only provide equipment with a total capacity of 60 GW to 70 GW.
Analysts at investment bank Jefferies estimated that data centers in the US alone have generated demand for almost 17 GW this year, and that figure could more than triple by 2028.
Although global gas turbine capacity is growing and is expected to reach 87 GW by 2028, it will still fall far short of expected demand. In the United States, it currently takes an average of six years to deliver a gas turbine.
However, used, refurbished or repurposed equipment has its own challenges: overhauled turbines may have an unclear maintenance history and limited service life. In turn, repurposed jet engines raise questions about their suitability for continuous operation as power generators.
“Every few weeks we get a request: ‘Can you find a used gas turbine to install in a data center?’” noted Darius Pardiwala, who heads Sulzer’s U.S. business.
Interestingly, Ukraine is also preparing for a large-scale expansion of its own infrastructure for artificial intelligence. At the end of the summer, the state launched the so-called sovereign infrastructure — the "AI factory", and is now negotiating with investors about building a full-fledged large data center in the country.
