Mumbai is expected to be the leading DC hub in the country, according to a report by JLL, Jones Lang LaSalle Incorporated.
The report titled ‘2020 India Data Center Market Update’, Mumbai with 199 MW IT load is the leading data centre hub of the country with nine internet cable landing and assured power supply makes it a preferred location.
The city is expected to add 330 MW during 2021-23 and Navi Mumbai is expected to account for 83 percent of capacity additions in Mumbai.
As the data centre landscape continues to evolve, the industry is expected to grow to reach 1,007 MW by 2023 from its existing capacity of 447 MW.
With the growing reliance on digital connectivity, demand is likely to increase further due to the rollout of 5G rollout, IoT-linked devices, data localisation and cloud adoption.
India’s data center sector will require an investment of $3.7 billion over the next three years to fulfill the 6 million sq. ft greenfield development opportunity for the industry, the report added.
Mumbai and Chennai are expected to drive 73 percent of the sector’s total capacity addition during 2021-23, while other cities like Hyderabad and Delhi NCR emerging as new hotspots.
Strong pre-commitments by global cloud players in the established markets of Mumbai and Pune continue owing to prevailing infrastructure, while new markets like Hyderabad are gaining momentum in this space.
“Mumbai is the most preferred destination for cloud players with a 60 percent share of the occupied space due to its excellent infrastructure support. The state has provided various incentives for setting integrated data center parks.
The new supply additions in the city are backed by pre-commitment from cloud players. The city’s strong demand is driven by BFSI, media and IT/ITes companies. Leading to high occupancy levels of 95 percent” said Karan Singh Sodi, Regional Managing Director – Mumbai, JLL India.
“India’s colocation data center industry witnessed unprecedented absorption of 102 MW during 2020, notching higher absorption than most key markets of Europe and America.
Fuelled by longer-term trends of rising cloud adoption, increasing digitalisation and progressive legislation, we anticipate increased demand for colocation space nationwide. Rising demand led data center operators and developers to pursue ambitious expansion plans, while some adopted the acquisition route to enter Indian markets, which we expect to continue.
Colo capacity grew by around 28 percent to reach 447 MW in 2020 from 350 MW in 2019” said Rachit Mohan, Head, Data Center Advisory (India), JLL.
The increasing usage of e-commerce, EdTech and digital transactions placed the existing IT infrastructure of enterprises under pressure. Overall data usage increased by 36 percent in 2020 due to increased usage of smartphones and fixed wireless access as per Nokia Mobile Broadband India Traffic Index 2021.
Enterprises have been upgrading their IT infrastructure by adopting hybrid models, given their budget constraints. Technology trends like 5G rollout, IoT-linked devices and AI will also result in stronger growth in demand, the company said.
According to JLL, the rapid growth of the data center industry has led to increased energy consumption and environmental impact. Increasingly, global cloud players setting up bases in India aim to reduce their carbon footprint and are looking at data centers that provide sustainable energy alternatives and are entering renewable energy power contracts.
India’s renewable energy capacity at 90 gigawatts accounts for a 25 percent share of the installed power capacity and provides tremendous scope for the development of green data centers.
“India’s data center industry is expected to add 560 MW during 2021-23 leading to a real estate requirement of 6 mn sq. ft. The supply addition will be complemented by densification of racks and servers, sustainable energy sourcing and use of indigenous resources.
Rising demand is leading operators to pursue ambitious expansion plans, while some are adopting the acquisition route to enter Indian markets. Various policies and reforms brought in by the Government to turn India into a ‘Global Data Hub’ has provided necessary measures to achieve this goal,” said Dr Samantak Das, Chief Economist and Head of Research & REIS (India), JLL.
Recently, India’s real estate company Hiranandani Group, had entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in the state of West Bengal to set up an industrial, logistics and hyper-scale data centre park in the region.
The Uttar Pradesh cabinet had also given its nod for a data centre policy, as the state looks to attract more investments and comply with the data localisation push advocated by the Indian government.
