Credit rating agency ICRA in its latest report expects a six-fold increase in data centre capacity to 5,100-5,200 MW involving investments of around Rs 1.60 lakh crore to be added in the next six years supported by significant data explosion and favourable regulatory policy initiatives by both states and the Centre. It noted that consequently, India’s share in global installed capacity is expected to sharply increase to 15-17% by 2028 from around 4% (19 GW) as of 2022.
According to the report, majority of the upcoming investments are geared towards meeting high demand in co-location services. This will continue to be driven by hyperscalers and segments, which require strict data confidentiality like BFSI, IT/ITES etc. Location, proximity to landing stations, fibre connectivity, uninterrupted power supply and high scoring on disaster proofing are some of key parameters to decide on a location for setting up data centres. For these reasons and proximity to tenant headquarters, Mumbai has emerged as the biggest DC destination. Chennai also has presence of landing stations, but its reputation took a dent due to the floods of 2017 and 2018.
It further said the other key emerging locations are Hyderabad and Pune, wherein some of the large hyperscalers are setting up huge DCs closer to their operational bases in India. Overall, Mumbai, Hyderabad, NCR and Chennai are likely to account for 85% of the installed DC capacity by 2028.
