NAACP sues xAI, alleging unlawful operation of gas turbines in Southaven

SOUTHAVEN, Miss. (WMC) - The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) alleges that xAI violated the Clean Air Act by operating dozens of methane gas turbines in Southaven, Mississippi, before an air permit was granted.

The Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC) and Earthjustice, representing the civil rights group, filed a lawsuit against the tech company and its subsidiary MZX Tech on Tuesday.

The groups announced their intent to sue over xAI's power plant in Southaven back in February.

In March, the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality granted an air permit for xAI's 27 gas-powered turbines at the facility, which powers the Colossus 2 data center in South Memphis.

The lawsuit filed Tuesday says that xAI violated the Clean Air Act by operating the turbines before the permit was granted.

NAACP officials say the plant's turbines "have the potential to emit a staggering amount of smog-forming nitrogen oxides (NOx), likely making the facility the largest industrial source of NOx in the 11-county Memphis metropolitan area."

The NAACP is also among several activist groups appealing the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality's decision to grant the air permit preemptively.

"xAI's continued operation of these turbines without a permit and without adequate pollution controls is not only illegal, it's an insult to families living nearby who for months have expressed serious concerns about how air pollution from the company's personal power plant could impact their health and well-being," SELC Senior Attorney Ben Grillot said. "xAI must be held accountable for its reckless, unlawful actions -- and that's exactly what this lawsuit aims to do."

The NAACP is asking the court to declare that xAI has violated the Clean Air Act, force xAI to stop operating unpermitted turbines at its Southaven facility, order xAI to install "the best available control technology" on the plant, and assess financial penalties to xAI for every day it violated federal law.

"xAI has been pumping illegal pollution into this community in its rush to power the 'Colossus 2' data center. No company - and no industry - has a free license to pollute our air," said Laura Thoms, the director of enforcement for Earthjustice. "xAI isn't above the law, and we're filing this lawsuit to hold them accountable."