New branches of the AI power tree are starting to grow
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Hunger is breeding creativity in the race to fuel AI data centers and meet rising U.S. power demand — with repurposed naval reactors and aircraft engines among the latest examples.
Why it matters: Companies are exploring fresh ways to repurpose existing tech used in other sectors, even as more familiar sources — like traditional gas, solar, and nuclear plants — play starring roles in the data center boom.
Here are some of the newest efforts ...
HGP Intelligent Energy is seeking DOE backing for a proposal to repurpose two naval warship reactors into onshore power units.
- The big picture: The company, a spinoff of battery power firm HGP Storage, tells Axios that using naval reactor tech on DOE sites can quickly bring on new nuclear capacity "while creating hundreds of permanent jobs for Navy nuclear veterans."
- State of play: It hopes to leverage DOE's authority to operate reactors on its land without Nuclear Regulatory Commission licensing, President Gregory Forero said via email.
- The intrigue: It envisions DOE retaining ownership and operation of the reactors, while HGP would finance, build, and operate the rest of the plant. "This addresses regulatory speed and HEU nonproliferation concerns, with existing site security," he said.
- What we're watching: The company tells Axios it has also raised private capital. Bloomberg, which first covered the effort, viewed the specific proposal and reports that it envisions 450-520 megawatts of power.
Plane engine maker FTAI Aviation Ltd. last week announced plans to convert and repurpose one of its major jet engines into stationary gas turbines to meet AI-driven power demand.
- Driving the news: The result "will provide the market with a 25-megawatt unit that offers grid operators greater flexibility and finer output control than larger units," it said in launching FTAI Power.
- The big picture: The company is using these engines that are nearing the end of their aviation life. It says it will "remanufacture" engines' core turbine and "adapt it with aeroderivative components." FTAI has an existing fleet of over 1,000 engines, plus a future pipeline, and says it has capacity to deliver over 100 converted units annually.
- Catch up quick: Using airline-derived systems for stationary power isn't new, but it's getting fresh attention — and attracting new players — amid the AI boom. Another aviation player, Boom Supersonic, unveiled plans for power turbines using its engine tech, with data center giant Crusoe as the first customer. Other efforts include incumbent heavyweight GE Vernova offering a version of propulsion turbines for stationary power.
- What they're saying: "This strategic repurposing not only extends the lifecycle and value of aero engines, but also addresses the surging power needs of AI infrastructure, providing a compelling new avenue for growth" in the aerospace sector, Morgan Stanley analysts said in a note on the FTAI launch.
Karpowership, which focuses on floating power and data center solutions, recently registered to lobby in the U.S.
- The Turkish multinational "is a transformative power infrastructure company engineered to meet the exponentially growing power demand in the U.S.," a spokesman told Axios.
The bottom line: Who knows what will ultimately prove viable and profitable? But lots of players are betting it will take a village to power AI.
