India's data centre stock likely to cross 3 GW by 2028: Report
New Delhi, May 29
India's data centre stock is expected to cross 3 gigawatts by the end of calendar year 2028, driven by a robust demand from hyperscalers, accelerating artificial intelligence workloads, and the country's structural advantage as Asia Pacific's most DC development-friendly market, a report said on Friday.
The report from CBRE said the total DC capacity in the country reached roughly 1,700 MW at the end of 2025 and that a supply addition of roughly 500 MW is expected in 2026.
DC stock measures the total computing power infrastructure available across a country's all data centres.
The report placed India among APAC's leading markets, a significant elevation from its tag of high growth, due to expanding live capacity, deep investment pipeline, and an improving infrastructure ecosystem.
India now stands alongside Japan, Australia, South Korea, Mainland China, and Malaysia in the top-tier category, it said.
"The combination of a low-bottleneck development environment, a rapidly expanding digital economy, and aggressive hyperscaler commitments positions India as one of the most compelling DC markets globally," said Anshuman Magazine, Chairman & CEO - India, South-East Asia, Middle East & Africa, CBRE.
As AI workloads multiply and the demand base broadens beyond cloud to Neocloud, GCCs and enterprise users, the country's capacity trajectory is likely to remain steep well beyond 2028, he added.
The report said that developmental road blocks such as power constraints, construction costs, shortage of skilled labour, and community & environmental risks are 'low' in India, making it the only major APAC market to achieve such a distinction.
"This structural advantage is translating into tangible results on the ground. Mumbai continues to anchor national capacity at 800+ MW, with a further 750 MW under construction or committed," the report noted.
Chennai, Hyderabad and Delhi NCR are emerging as the next wave of hyperscale destinations, while Bangalore remains the hub for enterprise colocation demand.
— IANS
Reader Comments
Mumbai leading at 800+ MW is impressive, but it's nice to see Chennai and Hyderabad stepping up too. With AI workloads exploding, this growth seems inevitable. Just hope the power constraints they claim are 'low' actually stay that way—our grid can be patchy in some areas.
Exciting times for India's tech infrastructure! Being alongside Japan and Australia is no small feat. The focus on AI and hyperscalers is smart—data is the new oil. But I worry about the skill shortage mentioned. We need more training programs for local talent.
As someone in IT, this is huge. The government's push on digital infrastructure is paying off. But let's not forget the smaller cities—if we can set up DCs in tier-2 cities like Pune or Ahmedabad, it could spread the economic benefits more evenly. Just a thought.
All very positive on paper, but I wish the report addressed data security and privacy regulations more. With so much data flowing through these centres, we need robust laws to protect citizens. Otherwise, we're just building a shiny highway without traffic rules.
Being ranked with Japan and Korea is a big flex for India! 🚀 The 'low bottleneck' claim is interesting—maybe our regulatory ease is finally being recognized. But I'm skeptical about the 'low community risk' part. Local protests over land and power can still be a hurdle, no?
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