The Commerce Minister said India could attract $200 billion in data centre investments as demand from AI and cloud computing grows, while the government and industry work to ease constraints around power, land and approvals.
Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal has projected an investment potential of $200 billion in India’s data centre industry, as rising demand from artificial intelligence and cloud computing drives the need for more digital infrastructure.
Goyal described India as the “world’s best location” for setting up data centres and highlighted the growth potential of the country’s AI, data centre and semiconductor industries.
He was speaking at a CEO roundtable on ease of doing business for scaling India’s data centre ecosystem at Vanijya Bhawan in New Delhi. The meeting was attended by 46 data centre companies as well as senior representatives from Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Haryana, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Telangana and Uttar Pradesh.
The roundtable focused on measures to speed up the deployment of data centre infrastructure, particularly by addressing issues related to power availability, land, regulations and taxation.
Demand for data centre capacity is rising rapidly on the back of cloud computing and AI workloads. Hyperscalers accounted for more than 80% of data centre absorption in India during the first half of 2026, according to the Commerce Ministry.
Power and land availability in focus
Industry and government representatives discussed measures to ensure adequate and reliable electricity supply to data centres, including cluster-based planning of transmission infrastructure and substations, sanctioned power load from the start of operations and dual power feeders.
The meeting also discussed facilitating the procurement of renewable energy across state boundaries.
Land availability was another area of focus, with stakeholders highlighting the need to develop data-centre-ready land banks and identify sites where the necessary power infrastructure is already available.
The roundtable also reviewed ways to reduce the time required to develop projects and improve certainty for investors, including streamlined single-window approvals and building regulations tailored to data centres.
The National Building Code 2026 now specifically recognises data centres under Group E and includes a dedicated annex covering requirements for such facilities, including fire-risk assessments and data-centre-specific performance indicators.
https://www.cnbctv18.com/india/piyush-goyal-sees-200-billion-investment-potential-in-indias-data-centre-industry-19982768.htm/amp
