Equinix doubles down on India as data centre demand surges in digital economy push

When Nasdaq-listed Equinix began operations in 1999, its intent was clear: to become the world’s largest digital infrastructure company. Now, 25 years later, it has built a global footprint, with over 270 data centres in 75 metros across 35 countries, including 63 International Business Exchanges (IBX) in the Asia-Pacific region. For the US-based data centre major, India is one of the most crucial markets.

One of the world’s largest data centre companies by revenue and global footprint, Equinix has big plans for India, a growing data centre market that, as per data from the market intelligence firm, JLL, has already crossed the 1 GW milestone at a robust pace of 24% CAGR since 2019.

“We manage around 40% of cloud ramps globally, and 40% of edge PoPs are housed within Equinix data centres. In India, we are the only provider hosting edge PoPs for AWS, Google, Oracle, and several other cloud players,” Manoj Paul, MD, Equinix India, tells Fortune India.

The Indian data centre industry grew from 350 MW in 2019 to 1030 MW in 2024, the JLL data shows. India’s strong growth in data centres has been driven by increasing demand from cloud service providers. India enjoys the advantage of one of the lowest data usage costs and the world's second-largest mobile user market, leading to strong digital growth. Equinix wants to double down on the rising demand in one of the fastest-growing economies.

Betting big on India’s digital leap

The company’s core business in India serves enterprises across banking, financial services, FMCG, and other sectors. It currently operates three data centres, two in Mumbai (both sold out) and one recently launched in Navi Mumbai. “We are developing two new sites, one each in Mumbai and Navi Mumbai. Our Mumbai site spans three and a half acres and should be ready by Q4 FY26,” says Paul. A Chennai site on a six-acre plot is also expected to go live in the coming months.

India remains a small market for Equinix globally, but its growth rate of 25–26% is notable. “Now, all Equinix interconnection services, like Fabric, Network Edge, Cloud Router, and Internet Access, are available in India. These enable global customers to enter India easily, and Indian enterprises to reach global markets through our 270 data centres worldwide.”

Paul notes rising demand from Indian enterprises, especially banks. “We’ve seen large RFPs from banks like SBI and HDFC. These clients require services like multi-cloud integration and telecom interconnection, which we are well-positioned to deliver.”

He also highlights the growing need for content distribution, driven by high telecom penetration and data consumption. “This content must be stored and distributed efficiently.”

Paul sees a surge in AI demand ahead. “India is one of the largest user bases for ChatGPT. We expect demand for AI infrastructure to rise sharply, and we are well-placed to support it.” On physical infrastructure, Paul says the mix of green and grid power is helping stabilise costs. “We hope costs remain stable or decline, and that the government enables us and others to use green power more efficiently.”

India’s power generation stands at 400 GW, while current data centre demand is just 1.6-1.7 GW, less than 0.5%, highlighting ample room for growth. Land scarcity remains a challenge, especially in cities.

The issue of land availability at cheaper prices becomes even more critical as the Indian data centre industry is set to add 795 MW of new capacity by the end of 2027, taking the entire capacity to 1825 MW. This will require 9.3 million sq ft of real estate space with $5.8 billion towards digital and real estate infrastructure, according to the JLL data. “We're competing with commercial and residential developers, which drives up prices. The government is working to address this,” says Paul.

Despite intensifying competition, Equinix is positioning itself on interconnection and hybrid multi-cloud. “We’re not just about power and cooling. We focus on helping businesses grow faster, become more efficient and flexible.”

That value proposition has drawn top global customers for the company. “About 60% of our revenue comes from clients deployed across 10 or more sites globally," says Paul, adding that nearly 46% of customers are present in over 30 sites across three continents.

Powering the cloud, sustainably

On sustainability, Paul says 75% of India operations will soon be powered by green energy via a group captive programme. “Globally, 96% of our energy is green, via PPAs, RECs or direct supply. We’ve invested $51 million last year to improve efficiency and reduce energy use across our existing data centres.”

Equinix is also deploying state-of-the-art cooling technologies, such as polar arrays, to support energy-heavy AI workloads. “They are costly but deliver lifecycle savings.” In India, Equinix partners with hyperscalers. “We host AWS Direct Connect, Google Dedicated Interconnect, Oracle FastConnect, and major CDNs and OTT platforms within our facilities.”

Paul doesn’t reveal revenue or profit figures but says growth is on track. “Our business plan for India is progressing well. We’re encouraged by rising interest from both international and domestic clients, and confident the business will continue to grow.”

The Indian data centre industry is poised for significant growth as the government focuses on a sovereign cloud policy, implements rules for personal data protection, and lays the groundwork for a $1 trillion digital economy by 2027-28. “India happens to be a very focused market for us… all the investments are going into growing the business in this country,” Paul says.