As technology companies intensify their efforts to secure the vast computing power necessary to develop and deploy artificial intelligence systems, Meta is making its inaugural AI infrastructure investment in India. This strategic move involves a data center partnership with the conglomerate Reliance Industries, situated in a market rapidly establishing itself as a pivotal hub for AI infrastructure.
The partnership, publicly announced on Wednesday, will see Meta collaborate with Reliance on the development of a 168-megawatt AI-enabled data center in Jamnagar, Gujarat. This initiative further deepens a relationship that has evolved from Meta’s multi-billion dollar investment in Reliance’s Jio Platforms to a $100 million joint venture launched last year, aimed at creating enterprise AI solutions for clients in India and global markets.
This agreement comes at a time when India is solidifying its position as a natural and attractive destination for AI infrastructure investments. Technology giants are actively seeking new geographic locations for data centers to meet the soaring demand for computing power required to train and deploy advanced AI models. Prominent companies including Microsoft, Amazon, Google, OpenAI, and Uber have recently declared significant AI and cloud infrastructure investments in the country, which has witnessed a rapid expansion of its data center footprint in recent years.
The swift entry into India extends beyond global technology firms. Earlier this week, Blackstone-backed AirTrunk unveiled plans to invest $30 billion to construct 5 gigawatts of data center capacity across the country by 2030. Simultaneously, leading Indian conglomerates such as Adani and Tata Consultancy Services have also announced extensive data center expansion plans, specifically designed to support the escalating demands of AI workloads.
New Delhi has proactively sought to attract such substantial investments through a range of policy incentives. These include tax exemptions, effective through 2047, for foreign cloud providers on services sold overseas, provided that the underlying workloads are processed from data centers located within India.
According to government data, India’s installed data center capacity has notably increased from approximately 375 megawatts in 2020 to an estimated 1.5 gigawatts by 2025. Industry projections suggest this figure could grow more than fivefold, surpassing 8 gigawatts by the end of the decade, driven by accelerating cloud adoption, the demands of AI workloads, and the rising need for localized data processing.
The Meta-Reliance agreement signifies the latest chapter in a relationship that has steadily deepened since Meta’s $5.7 billion investment in Jio Platforms in 2020. Since that time, the companies have expanded their collaboration across various domains, including digital services, enterprise AI, and now extending to the foundational infrastructure critical for next-generation AI systems.
As part of this partnership, Meta will lease capacity at Reliance’s new Jamnagar facility. Both companies have stated that this facility will be powered by renewable energy sources and cooled using desalinated seawater. Meta has committed to covering the entire cost of the energy and water required to support its operations within the data center.
Reliance has indicated that the 168-megawatt facility is expected to be operational within two years and will possess the capability for future expansion. Furthermore, the data center will also support Meta’s global infrastructure and AI computing requirements, thereby integrating India more directly into the company’s worldwide network of AI facilities.
Under the terms of the agreement, Reliance stated it would provide comprehensive, end-to-end services, encompassing design and construction, supplying renewable power, ensuring connectivity, and managing ongoing operations. This commitment underscores the conglomerate's ambition to establish itself as a one-stop provider for AI infrastructure solutions among leading global technology companies.
In a separate development, Meta announced that it had contracted nearly 1 gigawatt of new renewable energy capacity in India through distinct agreements with CleanMax and Fourth Partner Energy. This additional capacity will supplement the renewable power supporting the Jamnagar facility.
Beyond the substantial computing power they demand, data centers require vast quantities of water for cooling. This resource is under growing strain in India, the world’s most populous country, as demand for cloud and AI infrastructure continues to escalate. To mitigate this challenge for the Jamnagar project, Meta and Reliance have stated that the facility will utilize desalinated seawater for its cooling processes.
The companies did not disclose the specific financial value of the agreement, the precise types of AI workloads that will run from the facility, or whether Meta has plans for additional AI infrastructure investments in India.
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