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The data centre frenzy is back, and this time Schneider Electric Infrastructure is enjoying the spotlight.
What’s going on: shares of the company jumped nearly 10% after its parent, Schneider Electric, announced a deal with Taiwanese electronics giant Foxconn to build the next generation of AI data centres.
The collaboration combines Foxconn's expertise in AI servers, advanced computing platforms and manufacturing with Schneider Electric's strengths in power systems, cooling and energy management.
But why is everyone suddenly obsessed with data centres?
Because AI is hungry. Every chatbot query, AI image, video recommendation and cloud application runs inside a data centre packed with thousands of servers consuming enormous amounts of electricity.
And the opportunity is massive. India currently has around 1.2-1.5 GW of data centre capacity, but that figure is expected to grow 3-5 times by 2030.
Here's the interesting part: how do companies actually make money from data centres?
For tech giants like Google and Microsoft, data centres are the backbone of their cloud businesses.
They build the infrastructure, but the real profits come from selling services like cloud storage, computing power and AI tools to millions of customers.
Many local players follow a different model. Instead of selling cloud services, they rent out data centre space and computing capacity to businesses. Think of it as becoming a landlord for the digital economy.
With respect to Reliance, Morgan Stanley estimates they can charge roughly $1.5 to 1.6 million per megawatt of capacity per year.
Analysts also expect India to become the second-largest market for data centre electricity demand in Asia-Pacific within the next two years.
