The Economic Times reports India's data centre sector is in a multi-year expansion driven by digitalisation, cloud adoption and rising AI demand. According to brokerage Nomura, India's data centre IT load rose from about 350 MW in 2019 to nearly 1.5-1.6 GW in 2025, a CAGR of about 29%, and India's share of global capacity rose from roughly 1.5% in 2019 to 2-3% in 2025. Economic Times reports several listed companies tied to data-centre infrastructure, power equipment, cables, networking and AI hardware have delivered outsized returns in 2026, with some stocks surging as much as 477%. The article highlights Sterlite Tech (reported up 488% in 2026) and HFCL (reported up 170% in 2026); Economic Times cites CLSA saying Sterlite could rise another 11% after a reported $1 billion order win and that CLSA models a 49% EBITDA CAGR for Sterlite between FY26 and FY29. Editorial analysis: the story signals concentrated investor interest in AI-linked infrastructure in India and underscores monitoring hyperscaler demand and order flows.
What happened
The Economic Times reports that India's data centre industry is entering a multi-year growth phase driven by accelerating digitalisation, cloud adoption and growing AI demand. According to brokerage Nomura, India's data centre IT load expanded from about 350 MW in 2019 to nearly 1.5-1.6 GW in 2025, a compound annual growth rate of roughly 29%, versus about 20% globally. Economic Times reports the market has re-priced companies linked to data-centre infrastructure, power equipment, cables, networking and AI hardware; several listed names have posted outsized gains in 2026, with some stocks up as much as 477% in the year to date.
Reported company moves and broker views
Economic Times highlights Sterlite Tech as the largest winner, reporting the stock surged 488% in 2026. The article cites Hong Kong-based broker CLSA as saying Sterlite won a reported $1 billion order from a US hyperscaler, and that CLSA expects the stock to climb another 11% from current levels while modelling a 49% EBITDA CAGR for Sterlite between FY26 and FY29. Economic Times also reports HFCL rose about 170% in 2026.
Editorial analysis - technical context
Companies supplying data-centre equipment and connectivity typically see demand correlated with hyperscaler capex and enterprise cloud migration. Industry-pattern observations: rising AI workloads increase requirements for higher rack power density, accelerated compute (GPUs/TPUs), stronger fibre and power distribution, and larger on-site cooling capacity. These technical constraints tend to shift procurement toward vendors that can deliver higher-density power, high-bandwidth interconnects and efficient cooling solutions.
Industry context
Editorial analysis: The Economic Times coverage fits a broader trend where visible order wins and rising IT-load metrics drive investor interest in infrastructure-adjacent stocks. For practitioners, this means greater demand for deployment expertise, power-systems engineering, and network design in regions with accelerating capacity addition. Observed patterns in similar markets include supply-chain lead times extending for specialty cables and power gear and increased emphasis on energy-efficiency and grid arrangements.
What to watch
Indicators worth tracking include: reported hyperscaler order announcements and contract sizes; quarterly IT-load and capacity disclosures from data-centre operators; broker research updates on EBITDA and order-book assumptions; local power and land availability developments; and policy signals on data-centre incentives or restrictions. Industry observers will also follow whether reported order wins translate into multi-year revenue visibility for listed suppliers.
Scoring Rationale #
The story matters to infrastructure and operations practitioners because accelerating data-centre capacity affects procurement, power design and network planning. It is primarily an investment-market narrative rather than a technical/model breakthrough, so importance is notable but not frontier-level.
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