County regulators have issued permits to Elon Musk’s xAI to operate 15 natural-gas-powered turbines at its Memphis data center, despite previously operating without permits and amid ongoing legal disputes.
The facility, located just outside Memphis, Tennessee, received authorization yesterday from the Shelby County Health Department allowing the installation and operation of 15 Solar SMT-130 generators. These turbines collectively can generate up to 247 megawatts of electricity and are required to include specific emission controls.
However, the Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC), representing the NAACP, alleges that xAI has already been running up to 35 generators without proper permits, capable of producing a combined total of 421 megawatts at the facility. The legal group previously announced its intention to sue the company for violation of the federal Clean Air Act, citing concerns over environmental impacts and air quality issues.
According to the SELC, eight of the permitted Solar SMT-130 generators currently operating without formal authorization do have proper pollution control mechanisms. Under the conditions laid out by the county’s newly issued permit, xAI is authorized to emit substantial amounts of pollution annually—up to 87 tons of smog-producing nitrogen oxides (NOx), 94 tons of carbon monoxide, 85 tons of volatile organic compounds, 73 tons of particulate matter, and approximately 14 tons of hazardous air pollutants, including nearly 10 tons of the carcinogen formaldehyde. xAI will be responsible for maintaining and reporting its own emissions data.
The decision to grant permits has raised opposition among local community groups, prompting one Memphis-based organization to allocate $250,000 toward an independent air quality assessment. In June, Memphis city authorities undertook their own air quality tests, though the SELC criticized the methods and conditions of the testing. Among other issues, the independent environmental organization noted that the city’s contractor did not measure ozone and conducted measurements on days when prevailing winds moved pollutants away from the monitoring sites. Additionally, SELC claimed testing devices were improperly placed near structures that could have interfered with accurate readings.
Previously, health officials had maintained that they lacked jurisdiction to regulate mobile gas-powered generators operating less than 364 days annually—arguing that federal regulators had that authority. SELC dismissed this interpretation as inaccurate and unsupported legally.
Recently, xAI raised $10 billion, equally split between equity and debt financing, to fund ongoing operations and growth initiatives.
