Hitachi Energy India targets 30% data centre spend

Why data centres are becoming a core growth driver

Hitachi Energy India Limited is sharpening its focus on India’s fast-expanding data centre ecosystem, where power infrastructure is emerging as a critical bottleneck. The company has said demand for data centres is expected to increase significantly as localisation of data, artificial intelligence (AI) adoption and cloud usage rise. This growth matters for power equipment suppliers because data centres need large, continuous electricity loads and a high level of reliability.

Management has framed data centres as one of the “big growth segments” in India, and suggested the opportunity can be bigger than high-voltage direct current (HVDC) in the years ahead. The underlying driver, in the company’s view, is structural: data centres do not just add incremental demand, they can create step changes in load growth that then trigger additional investments across generation, transmission and grid modernisation.

From 10%-15% to a 30% target in data centre spending

Hitachi Energy India earlier pegged 10%-15% of total data centre spending in the country as its addressable market through its equipment and software offerings. It has now raised its ambition, stating it aims to capture 30% of India’s total data centre spending by offering end-to-end power solutions.

The shift is anchored in a broader offering called “grid-to-rack”, which the company says integrates power infrastructure starting at the grid connection and extending inside the data centre to rack-level distribution. The company positions this as a way to participate across more parts of the data centre power chain, rather than only a limited portion of the electrical package.

Grid-to-rack: what the solution covers

As described by the company, the offering spans grid connections that power a data centre through Hitachi Energy’s technology, and equipment inside the facility, including transformers. The company has also described data centre requirements as highly dynamic in terms of load management, which calls for advanced power management and energy storage solutions.

This approach is intended to address two priorities that the company highlighted as equally important for data centres: cost of power and reliability of power. Data centre operators, especially large hyperscalers, typically weigh power price, uptime performance, and the robustness of local grid connectivity when choosing and scaling sites.

Reliability requirements: 99.99% availability and round-the-clock power

Hitachi Energy India has pointed to the stringent reliability standards in this segment, citing a 99.99% availability requirement. For operators, that translates into an expectation of uninterrupted supply and resilient power distribution architectures within the facility.

The company’s pitch is that its experience in power transmission and grid management can be applied to these reliability needs, including grid integration, automation and digitalisation. It has also referenced digital twins and autonomous systems for grids as part of the broader shift toward smarter grid operations.

India’s data centre capacity outlook to 2030

On the demand side, the company has said India currently has less than 2 GW of data centre capacity. For the end of the decade, it cited projections ranging from 13 GW to 15 GW required by 2030, and separately referenced estimates of 13-18 GW by 2030. Another estimate cited is 13.6 GW by 2030.

While the projections vary, the common direction is sharp capacity growth within the next four to five years. For power infrastructure providers, that growth translates into demand for grid connections, transformers, gas-insulated switchgear (GIS), automation, and associated digital solutions.

Addressable market math: how the company frames the opportunity

In an investor discussion, the company indicated that roughly 10%-15% of data centre capex can be its addressable market under its earlier focus. The same discussion referenced a lower-end estimate of about $10 billion in total data centre capex lined up in India through 2030, implying that 15% could equate to a $1.5 billion opportunity over time.

Separately, the company has said its grid-to-rack portfolio expands its addressable market by adding another 10%-15% of data centre power infrastructure spending that was previously outside its focus. Put together with the new 30% ambition, the message is clear: Hitachi Energy India wants to participate in a larger share of the electrical and power-management stack that data centres require.

Investment and capacity expansion plans in India

Hitachi Energy India has announced a Rs 2,000-crore manufacturing expansion programme. The company has said it is investing to increase capacity across transformers, high voltage equipment, grid automation and HVDC, aligning with Make in India and energy transition-related demand.

Leadership has linked the investment plan to “strong and structural” demand visibility, not a short cycle. Alongside renewables integration, industrial electrification and electric mobility, the company has repeatedly named data centres as a significant contributor to transformer and grid infrastructure demand.

Broader opportunity set: renewables, transmission and HVDC pipeline

At an analyst day, the company highlighted transmission opportunities driven by the renewable power transition, along with electrification driven by mobility and battery energy storage systems (BESS). It also flagged an HVDC pipeline, stating that 10-15 HVDC projects are likely to be bid out with about 66 GW of capacity by FY35.

The same context noted Hitachi Energy India’s operating footprint, including supplying product applications in 60 GW of renewable projects, 80% of metro rail projects and one of two data centres. The company has positioned data centres as an additional growth vector alongside these established segments.

Market impact: what changes for investors and the ecosystem

For investors tracking the Indian electrical equipment cycle, the data centre buildout adds another demand leg beyond renewables and grid expansion. Management has also referenced a separate data point that demand is projected to nearly double to 458 GW by 2032, describing it as a structural tailwind.

For data centre developers, the key implication is that power infrastructure is increasingly a specialised, end-to-end requirement, spanning grid reliability, equipment availability, and sophisticated load management. For the broader ecosystem, management’s framing suggests data centres can drive secondary investments in generation and transmission due to the scale and concentration of load growth.

Key numbers and statements at a glance

What management has said about electrification and AI load

In its commentary on quarterly results, N Venu, Managing Director and CEO, Hitachi Energy India Ltd., said the company’s Q3 results highlight the increasing pace of electrification, with global electricity demand projected to surge over 70%. He also linked AI’s power-intensive growth to the need for strategic infrastructure investments, and said the company is focused on powering “AI-ready data centers”.

The statement also referenced India’s electrification focus, including capacity expansion and grid reliability, and cited a target of 2,000 kWh per capita consumption by 2030. In Hitachi Energy India’s framing, these trends reinforce the need for reliable, affordable and sustainable power infrastructure.

Conclusion: a bigger share of a fast-rising power segment

Hitachi Energy India is positioning data centres as a major multi-year growth engine, raising its ambition from a 10%-15% addressable market to a 30% share of data centre spending. The company is tying that goal to its grid-to-rack portfolio, which it says expands its participation across the power infrastructure stack.

The next signposts will be how quickly India’s data centre capacity scales from the current sub-2 GW base toward the 2030 projections, and how effectively Hitachi Energy India converts its expanded offering and planned manufacturing investments into orders across grid connection, distribution equipment and automation.