Meta has agreed to lease a 168-megawatt AI data center in India from Reliance Industries. The facility will come up in Jamnagar, and Reliance will bring it within two years.
Summary
- Meta agreed to lease a 168-megawatt AI data center from Reliance Industries in Jamnagar.
- Reliance will build and deliver the facility within two years, with a scaling option.
- Meta also signed clean energy agreements with CleanMax and Fourth Partner Energy for approximately 1GW.
The deal adds new AI infrastructure for Meta while expanding its partnership with Mukesh Ambani’s group.
Meta expands AI capacity in Jamnagar
According to Meta’s release, Reliance Industries will build an AI-powered data center for the American technology company. The plant will have a capacity of 168 megawatts and will include a metering option. Reliance operates businesses across petrochemicals, textiles, media, telecom, and digital services. Its new agreement with Meta adds data centers to the long-standing technology partnership between the two companies.
“This world-class facility in Jamnagar will help us grow our AI infrastructure globally,” said Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg. He said the project deepens Meta’s long-term investment in the Indian economy. Reliance Chairman Mukesh Ambani described Meta’s latest investment as a “transformational moment for India’s digital infrastructure.” His company will build the site and lease it to Meta after completion.
The two companies already have deep business links in India. In 2020, Meta invested $5.7 billion in Jio Platforms, Reliance Telecom and digital services unit. Last year, Meta and Reliance expanded their joint venture. The partnership makes Meta’s open source AI models available to Indian businesses and developers.
India is pulling data center capital
Global hyperscalers have increased data center usage in India as demand for AI infrastructure grows. The country attracted $400 billion in its AI ecosystem last year. Most of that money went to data centers and power systems, according to industry figures provided. Large AI systems require sites with large capacity and robust electricity.
Nomura said in a June 2 report that India’s data center industry is among the fastest growing in the world. The brokerage also said that India remains relatively cheap compared to developed markets in Asia Pacific and the West. India’s data center capacity could rise to 7 gigawatts by 2030, according to Nomura. The report linked that growth to cost advantages and increased demand for hyperscalers.
The Indian government also introduced a 20-year tax exemption earlier this year. The mission includes hyperscalers that use Indian data centers to serve customers outside the country. The tax law adds another incentive to companies building AI infrastructure in India. Meta’s Reliance deal comes amid that policy expansion and private sector investment.
Renewable energy deals support Meta’s operations
Meta also works with Indian clean energy companies CleanMax and Fourth Partner Energy. The company said the partnership covers about 1 gigawatt of renewable energy. The projects will be operational in all states of north and south India. They will provide clean electricity to Meta’s expanding infrastructure in the country.
Meta said the investment in India energy is in line with its goal of clean energy globally. Facebook parent wants to match all operations with 100% clean and renewable energy. The Jamnagar data center deal adds to Meta’s existing commitments in India.
The deal links Reliance’s AI infrastructure, renewable energy, and industrial base into a single project. Reliance will deliver the data center within two years, according to a Meta release. The facility also includes an option to rate after the first phase.
