RMZ ramps up data centre push with $35bn plan

Indian diversified real estate and investment firm RMZ plans to expand its data centre capacity to between 2 gigawatts and 3 gigawatts over the next five years as part of a $35 billion investment programme, a senior company executive said.

The Bengaluru-headquartered company currently operates 250 megawatts of data centre capacity and is in the final stages of discussions for three new projects that would increase its total capacity to more than 1 gigawatt, Deepak Chhabria, president of RMZ Infrastructure, told Reuters in an interview on Thursday.

In April, RMZ announced plans to invest more than $35 billion over the next five years to develop co-location data centres and AI factories, while also exploring a potential initial public offering.

India has emerged as a key market for artificial intelligence infrastructure and data centres, with global technology firms and Indian conglomerates committing billions of dollars towards expanding computing capacity. The country’s digital infrastructure sector is expected to attract more than $50 billion in planned spending across data centres, cloud and AI ecosystems.

“We are seeing only positive signs from some of the hyperscalers, and I think by the middle of this year, we will start ramping up capacity as we get clients signed up,” Chhabria said, without naming customers.

RMZ operates across major Indian cities, including Bengaluru, Mumbai and Hyderabad, and sees its data centre expansion as a gateway to related businesses such as graphics processing units (GPUs), power infrastructure and software, Chhabria said.

“Now we will use that as a stepping stone eventually to go up the food chain and build the bottom layer of power,” he said, referring to the company’s plans to expand deeper into the infrastructure that supports AI and cloud computing.

RMZ developed its existing 250-megawatt capacity through a joint venture with UK-based Colt Data Centre Services, and the two companies are exploring further growth opportunities, Chhabria said.

(With inputs from agencies)