BUY New & Used Commercial Backup Generators 1000kW-1199kW GENERATORS FOR SALE

Industries That Use 1000 kW to 1199 kW Generators

A buyer at this size is usually replacing or adding one megawatt of backup for a single site, and the load list is dominated by chillers, pumps, compressors, and process motors rather than lighting.

• Data centers: Enterprise server rooms and smaller colocation suites, where the requirement is how fast the set accepts a block of load after transfer.
• Hospitals: Healthcare buildings under life-safety code, with testing intervals and transfer timing set by the code rather than the owner.
• Cities and municipalities: County operations centers, dispatch, and emergency management buildings that have to stay lit through a regional event.
• Water districts: Booster and lift stations where two or three large pumps make up most of the megawatt.
• Oil and gas: Processing and compression sites, often with classified-area rules and long run hours.
• Rock crushing: Crushing and screening spreads running the generator as their only source, with big motors cycling all shift.
• Processing and cold storage: Refrigeration and process lines where an outage scraps product, with compressors starting through the day.
• Military installations: Base infrastructure bought under procurement rules that can narrow the field to new equipment or a named emissions tier.

Sizing notes by sector are on our industries served pages.

1000 kW to 1199 kW Generators at a Glance

• Apparent power: 1,250 to 1,499 kVA at 0.8 power factor.
• Current at 480V: 1,504 A at 1000 kW on our chart, rising to about 1,803 A at 1199 kW. At 4160V the same span is 174 to about 209 A.
• Diesel burn at full load: 71.1 gal/hr on our chart at 1000 kW, against 70.9 gal/hr on Generac’s SD1000 sheet.
• Fuel storage: Generac offers the SD1000 with tanks from 840 to 5,040 gallons, rated for 12 to 72 hours.
• Weight: an open SD1000 weighs 18,766 to 20,463 lb, or roughly 22,500 to 27,400 lb once a steel enclosure is added, before the tank.
• Most common format: a 1,000 kW diesel set, EPA Tier 2. Five of the seven units in our current listings for this range are exactly that.

This band sits inside our 1000kW – 1499kW generators category. For the single size at its center, see our 1000 kW generators page.

Seven Units Listed Between 1,000 and 1,050 kW

Everything listed in this range right now, with the kW as we listed it:

Nothing here sits above 1,050 kW. The band is really one size, a megawatt, with a single gas unit just over it. And the used diesels are remarkably fresh: the two 2007 DQFAD sets show 198 and 833 hours, which averages out to about 10 and 44 hours a year of exercise and outages. The live listings above update as units sell and arrive.

The Generac SD1000 and SG1000, Sheet by Sheet

Generac builds a diesel and a gas set at one megawatt, which makes its two sheets the cleanest side-by-side for this band. The SD800 is included as the step below, from our 800 kW generators page.

Three things come out of the sheets. The SD1000 makes 200 kW more than the SD800 from a smaller engine, in a lighter open frame, at a slightly lower full-load burn. The gas SG1000 needs 18.4 more liters of displacement than the SD1000 to reach the same class, and it is more than 4,000 lb heavier open. And neither the SD1000 nor the SG1000 sheet publishes a dB(A) figure, so sound levels have to be confirmed for the specific enclosure.

What a Megawatt Burns by the Hour and by the Tank

Our diesel fuel consumption chart has one row inside this band and the 1250 kW row just above it:

At one megawatt the chart and the Generac sheet agree within a few tenths of a gallon at full load. Generac’s tank ratings follow from that burn rate: each 840-gallon step buys about 12 hours at 70.9 gal/hr.

If the set will carry well under its rating during an outage, the half-load column is the better planning number. Pick the tank from the runtime your site has to cover without a fuel delivery, since that decision also sets the load on the pad.

1,500 to 1,800 Amps: How Voltage Shapes the Install

Three-phase current at 0.8 power factor. The 1000 kW and 1250 kW rows are from our generator amperage chart; the 1199 kW row is scaled from the 1000 kW row, since current rises in step with kW.

At 208V a megawatt would mean 3,470 A or more, well over twice the 480V figure. At 480V, the common choice, the 1,500 to 1,800 A output current sets the frame size of the main breaker, the number of parallel conductor sets per phase, and the rating of the transfer switch or switchgear it lands on.

A 600V set carries about 20 percent less current than the same set at 480V, and a 4160V set carries less than a seventh as much, at the price of medium-voltage terminations and gear. Medium voltage becomes worth pricing at this output, since the bus and conductor package grows with the current. When buying used, match the alternator voltage to the service you already have rather than planning around a change later. Our power calculators will turn your load list into a working kW and amp figure.

Diesel or Natural Gas at Exactly One Megawatt?

Diesel for emergency standby, natural gas when the site has a high-pressure gas service and the unit will run often or for long stretches.

The SD1000 carries its fuel on site and needs nothing from a utility during an outage, and six of the seven units we list in this band are diesel. The SG1000 removes the tank, fuel polishing, and refueling logistics, but it asks a lot of the gas line: 11,243 scfh at full load and 14 to 28 inches of water column, so a building with ordinary low-pressure service may need an upgraded meter set or a new service before it qualifies. It also needs the larger engine, frame, and enclosure noted above. The one gas unit on the ground in this range, the new Gillette SP-1M at 1,050 kW, is listed as a standby set. Diesel units are under industrial diesel generators and gas units under industrial natural gas generators.

Enclosure Level, Footprint, and What the Crane Lifts

Choose the enclosure for the sound and weather the site requires, then plan the pad and the lift around its weight.

Generac offers the SD1000 in steel Level 0, Level 1, and Level 2 enclosures that share one 304.0 x 105.7 x 137.0 inch footprint and weigh 3,761, 5,005, and 6,901 lb. Added to the open set, that puts an enclosed SD1000 between about 22,500 lb and 27,400 lb before a sub-base tank and fuel. The SG1000’s enclosed versions measure 329.3 x 105.8 x 136.9 inches and weigh 24,092 to 29,499 lb depending on level and metal. A sub-base tank of up to 5,040 gallons sits under the skid, so the pad, the delivery route, and the crane are sized for the combined package. Browse industrial standby generators for pad-mount units, and see our shipping and returns policy for delivery terms.

Is a Low-Hour Used Megawatt Set Worth Buying?

Usually yes, provided the records, alternator, and controls check out, because standby duty leaves these engines lightly used.

The used diesels listed here average roughly 10 to 85 hours a year since they were built, from the 2007 DQFAD at 198 hours to the 2015 QAC1200 FLX at 927. The QAC1200 FLX is listed as a rental-grade power module, packaged for relocation, while the DQFAD units are listed as standby sets. On a set with this few hours, age matters more than the meter: check fuel system condition, coolant hoses and seals, battery and charger, the alternator’s insulation, and whether the controller generation can talk to your switchgear. Every diesel listed in this range is EPA Tier 2.

New is the answer when the spec requires it: a factory warranty in the contract, a newer emissions tier for a permitted install, or a procurement rule against used equipment, which is common in military, municipal, and healthcare work. The new 2026 DQFAD and the 2023 Caterpillar D1000GC cover that case. Compare used industrial generators with new industrial generators.

Renting While the Permanent Set Is Installed

Rent for the gap, buy for the pad. At a megawatt, permitting, pad work, and switchgear often run longer than sourcing the generator, and a rental covers the facility in the meantime, along with turnarounds and emergency replacement after a failure. Our rental side, Stag Power Rentals, handles those jobs. For permanent standby, a set that runs a few dozen hours a year is far cheaper to own than to rent, and our generator financing options let the equipment order move ahead alongside the site work.

Too Small or Too Large for 1000 kW to 1199 kW?

If the load study lands under 1,000 kW, the band below is a simpler, lighter install. If motor starting or growth pushes it past 1,200 kW, step up rather than run a megawatt set at its limit.

A diesel run far below its rating for long periods develops wet stacking, so oversizing has a maintenance cost as well as a purchase cost. You can also browse every output we carry on shop by kW.

Inspected, Load Tested, and Backed After the Sale

Every unit in this range goes through a 22-point inspection and load bank testing before it ships, which is how a low-hour standby set proves it can carry a full megawatt rather than just start. We’ve been buying and selling industrial generators for over a decade. New or used, every purchase carries our 30-day IronClad warranty, and our service and maintenance team handles scheduled testing, industrial generator repair, and emergency service once it’s in place.

Ready to Buy a 1000kW – 1199kW Generator?

Tell us your service voltage, the runtime you need without a fuel delivery, and whether there’s gas on site, and we’ll match it to a megawatt set that fits your switchgear, then show you what’s on the ground in new and used. Look through our used industrial generators and new industrial generators, or contact us and we’ll work the load study with you.