Expensive and polluting Boeing 707 engines have been used several times this year to stabilize the electricity grid, particularly during periods of high demand. An exceptional situation highlighted by a breakdown of Tihange 1 and low production of renewable energy.
Turbojets, or “turbojets”, initially designed to equip Boeing 707s, run on kerosene and can provide electricity in minutes. However, their use remains rare, because these devices are expensive, inefficient and very polluting. They are only used as a last resort, in cases of high demand and insufficient energy supply.
Matthias Detremmerie, co-founder of energy supplier Elindus, confirmed that these engines have already been activated several times in 2025.The situation must already be very serious, with imbalance prices of around 1,000 euros per megawatt hour, or even more expensive“, he clarified.
Activation in response to breakdowns and cold
A notable example occurred on January 14, during a snowy episode, but also this Monday, after an unforeseen outage of Tihange 1. This failure caused imbalances on the energy market, with prices reaching 2,450 euros per month. megawatt hour.
According to Mr. Detremmerie, this situation is aggravated by a virtual absence of renewable energy during the first half of January, despite low temperatures. “Prices on day-ahead trading are already high. And when an event occurs such as worse than expected weather conditions or, for example, the failure of Tihange 1, the remaining reserves are very, very expensive“, he added.
-Complex network management
Gas power plants, used as a priority, are already operating at full capacity in this type of situation. The use of turbojets is therefore an emergency solution, essential to maintain the balance of the electricity network.
These events are a reminder of the challenges posed by the energy transition, particularly in winter, when demand is high and renewable supply is sometimes insufficient.
electricity electricity production turbojets Boeing 707 aircraft engines electricity network network stabilization tihange 1 renewable energy power outage winter 2025
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