The power ministry is gauging power and transmission needs as India’s rapidly booming data centre market is anticipated to drive a spike in power demand in the next decade.
The power ministry is evaluating power infrastructure across the nation to meet the escalating power demand of data centres as India’s fast-expanding digital economy is expected to cause the electricity requirement to surge, The Economic Times reported. The ministry estimates internally that data centres will demand 26GW by 2032 and grow to 35.7GW by 2040.
The ministry has thus begun deliberations with power distribution utilities, transmission companies and data centre builders, in tandem with the Central Electricity Authority (CEA), on power supply, transmission connectivity and infrastructure readiness.
The power ministry is working with states for necessary infrastructure preparation as additional data centre initiatives continue to be declared, it said. Discussions will centre on augmenting grid and transmission capabilities to sustainably back the data centres over the coming years, said one executive in the sector.
A KPMG study last month pointed out that the Indian data centre market continues to grow rapidly in terms of capacity additions due to increasing digital demand and further infrastructure investment.
The Indian data centre value chain’s end-to-end addressable market will provide a market opportunity of $90 billion by FY35, the KPMG report added.
According to The Economic Times, the central government has also begun delineating a national demand map of power from announced projects.
