India's office REITs enter data centers amid AI cloud surge
India's office-focused Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) are moving beyond office buildings and getting into the data center game, thanks to a huge surge in AI and cloud computing.
But building these high-tech hubs is expensive and complicated, so participation is likely to be limited to well-capitalised trusts with strong capital or technical partners.
CapitaLand India Trust sells 20.2% stake
Setting up just 1 MW of data-center capacity costs over $10 million (around ₹96 crore).
To handle this, CapitaLand India Trust (CLINT) sold a 20.2% interest in three of its data-center assets to raise cash, while Mindspace Business Parks REIT teamed up with Princeton Digital Group, and its completed and future data-center portfolio is expected to comprise five facilities.
Both are trying to balance India's digital growth with keeping investors happy.