Minister flags environmental costs involved in setting up data centre

Amid concerns over environmental costs, particularly water and energy consumption, Karnataka is reviewing its policy on data centres, IT/BT Minister Priyank Kharge informed the State Legislative Assembly on Wednesday.

Explaining the costs involved in establishing data centres, Mr. Kharge said around ₹70 crore is required to set up one megawatt data centre, and the total power usage, including cooling/infrastructure, is about 1.7 MW of power. About 25 million litres of water per year is required for one MW data centre. However, the actual cost depends on the location and land cost, sources said.

However, he noted that new technologies are emerging that enable the use of treated water in data centres. “We have to relook at our policy, which is 2 to 3 years old,” he said

Replying to a question from Dheeraj Muniraju of the BJP from Doddaballapur, Mr. Kharge said that 32 private data centres are currently functioning in the State. “We already have a data centre policy, which we are reviewing,” he added.

‘Necessary evil’

Describing data centres as a “necessary evil”, the Minister said they are essential for artificial intelligence, machine learning and other emerging technologies, but they also consume large quantities of water and energy.

Earlier, Mr. Muniraju said Bengaluru was losing out on data centre investments as companies were moving to other Indian cities. Bengaluru currently ranks fifth among Indian cities for data centres, after Mumbai, Hyderabad, Chennai and Delhi, he said.

Mr. Muniraju noted that several global technology firms have offices in Bengaluru and suggested that their data centres should be retained in the city.

Sustainable policy

Mr. Kharge said the government is working towards a “sustainable data centre” policy and that the focus would be on Mangaluru and other coastal areas. “Hyperscale data centres may not be suitable for Bengaluru, which does not have a port and lacks abundant water resources,” he said.

Data centres requiring more than 40 MW of power would fall under the hyperscale category, he added.

The Minister also said discussions were under way with private companies on laying subsea cables in the coastal region. He had written to the Union Telecom Ministry seeking a subsea cable landing station in Mangaluru, and the Ministry had responded positively, stating it would extend support if private companies took up the implementation.