SHIELDX™ Dynamic Power Stabilisation

SHIELDX™ - for AI-Ready Data Centres

Stabilising the Future of High-Density Compute

AI and large-scale machine-learning clusters are transforming global power architectures at unprecedented speed. Not long ago, a 20 MW data centre was considered significant. Today, power-dense AI compute campuses routinely scale from 100 MW to multiple gigawatts, with the world’s largest operators planning even higher densities.

In this new landscape, AI-scale workloads introduce rapid, multi-megawatt load-step changes — 80%, down to 40%, back to 90% — all within sub-second timeframes. These extreme load swings propagate upstream, placing growing strain on transmission grids and, in many regions, beginning to destabilise them.

The Shift to Behind-the-Meter Power

As grid-connection queues lengthen and grid power availability becomes increasingly constrained, operators are turning to behind-the-meter (BTM) onsite generation to secure the power they need. But this necessary shift brings its own challenges.

In a traditional data centre, the public grid acts as a vast shock absorber — instantly providing power during spikes, and absorbing demand when workloads drop.

With independent onsite generation, that buffer no longer exists. Engines and turbines must directly handle abrupt, high-magnitude load changes, a task they were never designed to manage at scale. This is where the true challenge begins. 

Today, only 1% of data centres operate solely on BTM islanded power plants. But within the next five years, this is expected to rise to 30%, driven by power-availability constraints, soaring AI demand, and the need for self-sufficient, high-reliability energy architectures.

SHIELDX™

Built for AI Transients. Built for Island Mode.

This is where SHIELDX™ delivers an advantage above all other stabilisation technologies —providing the ultra-fast, bi-directional power conditioning and high fault clearing capability required to keep both the data-centre load and the onsite generation plant stable — a capability essential in islanded power architectures.

At its core, SHIELDX™ integrates:

  • A high-inertia electromechanical stabiliser providing continuous voltage and frequency conditioning.
  • Ultra-fast, bi-directional kinetic power modules that absorb or inject active power in real time. 
  • A modular, scalable architecture positioned between generation and the data-centre electrical distribution.

This foundation enables SHIELDX™ to handle both large sudden load steps and the rapid, frequent transients characteristic of AI workloads, with true short circuit and high fault-clearing capability, delivering premium-quality power to the data hall.

Why Islanded Power Plants Need SHIELDX™

Even the best engines and turbines cannot ramp fast enough to chase the sharp spikes and troughs of AI-scale workloads. Their mechanical ramp-rate limits mean that load changes occurring in hundreds of milliseconds can take tens of seconds to follow. When forced to chase these rapid fluctuations, plants experience:

  • Stressful, repeated ramp cycles
  • Reduced engine life
  • Inefficient fuel consumption
  • Increased trip risk during large step changes
  • Instability across synchronised units
  • Propagating voltage disturbances

These challenges are increasingly being met with blunt, inefficient tools that were never designed for the speed or magnitude of modern AI load dynamics.

The Oversizing Problem

The traditional response to AI load volatility is to oversize the power plant — adding additional engines or gas turbines simply to cope with extreme load steps.

However, oversizing brings substantial downsides:

  • Higher installed emissions
  • Lower operational efficiency
  • Increased fuel consumption
  • Larger physical footprint and CapEx
  • More maintenance across under-utilised assets

Battery Limitations

Battery Energy Storage Systems can help with certain fluctuations, but large, ultra-fast AI load steps exceed typical BESS capabilities:

  • C-rate limits restrict how fast they can discharge or absorb power
  • Rapid cycling leads to overheating and thermal stress
  • Degradation accelerates dramatically, resulting in repeat CapEx 

SHIELDX™ manages AI transients at their source, letting operators right-size their power plants instead of building oversized capacity. It offers the responsiveness needed for AI-scale power — without the ongoing degradation or replacement cycles associated with batteries.

Protecting Both Sides of the Power Chain

SHIELDX™ creates a continuous, stabilisation layer — shielding the plant from the data centre loads and shielding the data centre from any plant level disturbances. 

1. Protection from AI Load Surges

AI workloads can ramp up or down by several megawatts almost instantaneously — far faster than any power-generation technology can follow.

During these surges, SHIELDX™ instantly injects active power, effectively buying time for the generation fleet to pick up the load.

When the load throttles back, the surplus power produced while the plant ramps down is absorbed and momentarily stored as kinetic energy.

The power plant sees a smooth, controlled profile. This:

  • Prevents frequency dips 
  • Reduces thermal and mechanical stress
  • Keeps the generator fleet operating efficiently and within their optimal ramp-rate limits

2. Protection During Generation Trips

If an engine or turbine unexpectedly trips, SHIELDX™ immediately injects active power while holding voltage and frequency stable. This ensures:

  • Remaining units can take up the load without stress
  • Spinning reserve can synchronise cleanly
  • The data centre experiences no voltage flicker or frequency excursions

3. Continuous Stability and Conditioning

Whether disturbances originate from the load side or the generation side, SHIELDX™ responds instantly — unconstrained by compute-logic decision cycles or the chemical reaction times of battery systems — maintaining voltage and frequency within ±1%, enabling high-fault-clearing performance with zero degradation of stabilisation capacity over its lifecycle.

Modular, Scalable, Deployment-Ready

SHIELDX™ built-to-stock architecture allows operators to deploy stabilisation capacity at unprecedented speed — whether at the plant design stage for maximum protection, or as a retrofit solution for existing sites struggling with plant performance under AI-scale loads.

Available in containerised, self-enclosed housings, SHIELDX™ integrates cleanly into new-build layouts or can be dropped into live sites with minimal disruption.

Key advantages include:

  • Seamless compatibility with mixed-generation plants, including gas turbines, high-speed Gensets, and hybrid configurations
  • Suitable for Grid-tied facilities and islanded plants
  • Built-to-stock manufacturing enabling shipment in under 4-6 weeks.
  • Deployable for retrofit applications where stabilisation gaps are already being felt

Downloads

  • Let’s talk behind-the-meter (island) power for AI data centers

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