India's data centers face power strain amid AI driven expansion
Business
India's data centers are gearing up for huge growth, jumping from 1.5 GW in fiscal 2026 to 8 GW by fiscal 2031, as AI workloads make facilities more power-intensive.
But powering all those servers is proving tricky; electricity supply is tight and costs are climbing fast, making expansion a real challenge.
Data center costs exceed ₹80cr/MW
Electricity now eats up most of a data center's operating budget, and grid upgrades are lagging behind demand (just 26% of planned lines finished so far).
With more powerful servers and cooling tech needed, building new centers costs over ₹80 crore per MW, almost double what it used to.