India’s data centre pipeline stands at 8.33 GW: Knight Frank India

India is seeing a massive build-up of data centre capacity, with the total development pipeline across major markets of the country reaching 8.33 GW (8,326.6 MW), according to Knight Frank India, a global property consultancy.

Driven by increasing AI adoption, rise of cloud computing, digital transformation initiatives, and data localisation requirements, India is rapidly emerging as one of the world’s most attractive destinations for hyperscale digital infrastructure investments.

The country currently has 0.32 GW (322.4 MW) of data centre capacity under construction, while 2.92 GW (2,920.2 MW) has reached the committed stage, Knight Frank India has pointed out. Additionally, 5.41 GW (5,406 MW) of capacity is in early stages of development, highlighting the scope of future supply across the country's data centre hubs.

The scale of the pipeline reflects growing confidence among hyperscalers, cloud providers, AI infrastructure operators and institutional investors, who continue to expand their presence in India to cater to rapidly rising digital demand, Knight Frank India noted.

City-wise pipeline

Mumbai leads with a pipeline of 3.75 GW, followed by Hyderabad at 1.93 GW and Chennai at 1.36 GW. The National Capital Region (NCR), Pune and Bengaluru are also witnessing sustained development.

Viral Desai, International Partner, Senior Executive Director - Occupier Strategy & Solutions, Industrial & Logistics, Capital Markets & Retail, Knight Frank India, said, "India’s data centre growth story is increasingly becoming a tale of regional specialisation. While Mumbai continues to anchor hyperscale deployments owing to its connectivity advantages, Hyderabad is emerging as a preferred AI infrastructure destination, and Chennai is strengthening its role as a strategic gateway for international data traffic from east.

"At the same time, Vizag has rapidly emerged as one of India’s most active greenfield data centre markets, attracting gigawatt-scale development proposals backed by government support, availability of sizeable land parcels and planned subsea cable connectivity."

With a future development pipeline of 8.33 GW—more than five times the country’s current live operational capacity of 1.6 GW—India is well positioned to emerge as a leading global hub for hyperscale, cloud and AI infrastructure over the coming decade, said Knight Frank India.