Elon Musk’s artificial start -up Xai has secured an air permit from Memphis Health officials for his data center project despite critics’ resistance and pending litigation. Shelby County Health Department approved the permit this week, enabling Xai to operate 15 mobile gas turbines at its facility.
Granted air permit
The Air Authorization comes after months of protests from Memphis residents and environmental lawyers who claimed Xai violated the Clean Air Act by operating gasturbine without prior approval according to a report from Cable.
The Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC) and NAACP have claimed that Xai installed dozens of gas turbines on its new data campus without acquiring the mandatory prevention of significant deterioration (PSD) permission required for large emission sources.
Local officials previously declared that the turbines were considered “temporary” and thus not subject to stricter permission. Xai applied for an air permit in January 2025, and in June Memphis Mayor Paul Young acknowledged that the company was operating 21 turbines. However, Selc has claimed that air recordings show that the number may be as high as 35.
Critics are not giving up
Civil rights groups have stated that they intend to move forward with litigation. “Xai’s decision to install and operate dozens of polluting gas turbines without permits or public supervision is a clear violation of the Clean Air Act,” said Patrick Anderson, senior lawyer in Selc.
“Over the past year, these turbines have pumped out contamination that threatens Memphis families’ health. This message paves the way for a trial that can hold Xai responsible for his illegal rejection of obtaining permits for his gas turbines,” he added.
Sharon Wilson, a certified optical gas image thermographer, also described the emission cloud in Memphis as remarkable. “I expected to see the typical power plant type pollution that I see. What I saw was far worse than what I expected,” she said.
The Post Xai’s Memphis Data Center receives air permission despite criticism of society first appearing at Teslarati.