Arbor Energy, a young power technology company, has secured a multibillion-dollar order that could push rocket-inspired turbines into the heart of the electric grid. The startup agreed to sell up to 5 gigawatts of its Halcyon modular turbines to GridMarket, a firm that brokers power projects for data centers and heavy industry.

The deal, worth an estimated single-digit billions of dollars, would translate into as many as 200 turbines. Each 3D-printed unit is designed to generate 25 megawatts, using turbomachinery derived from rocket engines rather than conventional gas turbines. Arbor’s pitch is simple: deliver large amounts of firm power, fast, with a dramatically smaller carbon footprint.

Arbor plans to connect its first turbine to the grid in 2028 and scale up manufacturing through 2030, targeting production of more than 100 turbines a year. Longer term, the company aims to add 10 gigawatts of new capacity annually, positioning itself as a major supplier to the surging data center market, where demand for electricity is outpacing traditional planning cycles.

Halcyon’s original design centered on biomass. Crop residues and wood waste are converted into syngas and burned with pure oxygen, producing a stream of nearly pure carbon dioxide that can be captured and stored underground. Because the biomass would otherwise decompose and emit greenhouse gases, the system can deliver carbon-negative electricity when run entirely on organic feedstocks.

To broaden its appeal, Arbor has since reengineered Halcyon to run on natural gas as well as biomass. In that “omnivore” mode, the turbine still produces a concentrated CO2 stream suitable for sequestration, but the overall climate impact depends on methane leakage in the gas supply chain and the effectiveness of carbon capture. Arbor says it is working with low-leak suppliers and targeting lifecycle emissions below 10 grams of CO2 per kilowatt-hour, far below the roughly 400 grams typical of standard gas plants without capture.

The order from GridMarket underscores how quickly power-hungry data centers are reshaping the generation landscape. Established turbine manufacturers, constrained by complex supply chains for precision-cast blades and vanes, have struggled to ramp up. Arbor is betting that its reliance on machined and 3D-printed parts will let it move faster, delivering high-performance turbines on timelines that match the digital economy’s accelerating appetite for electricity.