JLL’s H1 2020 ‘re(Imagine) Data Centers Running India’s digital economy report shows that data center market in India presents a $4.9 billion investment opportunity in the period between the first half of 2020 and 2025, as the capacity is expected to grow from 375 MW to 1,078 MW in this period, registering a CAGR of 21%. Particularly, 43% of the utilized colocation capacity is occupied by the public cloud. During the COVID-19 lockdown, there were be a 14% rise in data consumption.
An increased shift from captive to colocation
The impact of data protection laws increased shift from captive to colocation, data centers, and implementation of new technologies will drive sustained investor demand for this asset class over the next five years, according to the report.
Mumbai and Chennai will be the two cities that are expected to lead the data center industry growth due to the advantage of connectivity, power supply, and user industry. This huge growth would create a need for real estate space of 9.3 mn sq ft and open up a USD 4.9 bn greenfield investment opportunity for real estate developers and investors during the next five and half years ending 2025.