India’s Data Center Pipeline Reaches 3.1GW, Emerging as a Key Growth Engine in APAC: Cushman & Wakefield
Gurugram, May 27, 2026: India has established itself as the second-largest digital infrastructure market in the Asia Pacific (APAC) region, boasting 1.6 GW of operational data center capacity. According to Cushman & Wakefield’s Global Data Center Market Comparison 2026 report, the country also ranks among the top three regional markets for future development, with a pipeline of 3.1 GW under construction and planned. This rapid expansion is being driven by accelerating artificial intelligence (AI) adoption, massive hyperscale cloud expansion, and rising enterprise demand across a multi-market domestic ecosystem, Cushman & Wakefield said in a press release.
The report, which evaluates 107 global markets, highlights that India’s primary hub of Mumbai is on track to surpass 1 GW of operational capacity by the end of 2026. Growth is simultaneously spreading into secondary markets due to land and power availability. Hyderabad has emerged as the top secondary market in APAC and the ninth largest globally, while cities like Chennai, Delhi NCR, and Pune are seeing heightened investment. Furthermore, over 10.5 GW of capacity remains at the land stage nationally, indicating immense long-term scalability for a market that remains structurally underpenetrated with a low vacancy rate of 12.9% as of Q4 2025.
India’s data center momentum is heavily backed by proactive policy and infrastructure developments, including the Draft National Data Centre Policy 2025, which proposes tax exemptions of up to 20 years. To support this massive power-hungry infrastructure, India ranked fourth globally in electricity production growth between 2022 and 2025. However, the report notes that grid efficiency remains a critical focus area, as domestic transmission losses still hover at 14.2% while regional developer pipelines face intense pressure to pre-lease capacity before construction concludes.
“The global data center sector is moving into a more execution-driven phase of growth, where access to power, infrastructure readiness and delivery capability are becoming as important as demand itself,” said Gautam Saraf, Executive Managing Director, Mumbai & New Business, Cushman & Wakefield. “India is well positioned within this shift given its combination of strong demand visibility, expanding development pipeline, and growing multi-market ecosystem across both primary and emerging locations. As capacity requirements continue to evolve, markets that can support scalable deployment, reliable infrastructure, and faster execution timelines are expected to see stronger long-term momentum.”
