Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu laid the foundation stone for a landmark $15 billion Google Artificial Intelligence data centre near Visakhapatnam on Tuesday. The project, attended by Union IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, is being viewed as a defining milestone in India’s digital and AI infrastructure ambitions, positioning Visakhapatnam as an emerging global technology hub. Nara Lokesh, the Minister for Information Technology, Electronics and Communications for Andhra Pradesh was also present at the project inauguration. In an exclusive interview with ET Now, Nara Lokesh shared how thisGoogle AI Data centreis a milestone for India's IT infrastructure.
What does this AI data centre project in Visakhapatnam mean for the region?
A: This project is not just significant for Visakhapatnam and Andhra Pradesh, but for the entire country. Under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, we’ve been able to bring in reforms that India has not seen before—especially around clarity on permanent establishment and tax holidays.
Together, we worked to secure this investment, and I believe this is just the beginning. This is a 1 GW facility, but much more will follow. For the first time, we are seeing inbound interest rather than outbound efforts for attracting investment into the data ecosystem.
What kind of broader ecosystem do you expect this investment to trigger?
A: It’s not just about data centres. The idea is to build a full ecosystem—cooling systems, server manufacturing, power electronics, rack manufacturing, and everything that supports this sector.
This will make Andhra Pradesh a highly competitive and sustainable hub for the entire AI and data infrastructure value chain.
What is the expected timeline for this project to be completed?
A: The timeline has already been set. Our Chief Minister has indicated that August 15, 2028 is when the facility will be inaugurated and dedicated to the nation, with the Prime Minister expected to be present.
We are working backward from that date to ensure everything is delivered on time. When there are fixed timelines, we execute.
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