AdaniConneX Vizag Data Centres to Use Air Cooling, Cap Freshwater Use Below Olympic Pool Volume

AdaniConneX's planned data centre campuses in Visakhapatnam, developed in partnership with Google, will deploy air-cooled systems instead of water-based evaporative cooling, keeping total freshwater consumption across the three sites below the volume of an Olympic-sized swimming pool, according to project details. The campuses at Mudasarlova and Tarluvada form part of a proposed development with a capacity of about 1 gigawatt, as Visakhapatnam positions itself as a major hub for artificial intelligence and digital infrastructure.

Unlike conventional data centres that rely on evaporative cooling systems and cooling towers, the proposed facilities will use air-based cooling technology, avoiding the large volumes of water typically consumed by such systems. Of the limited freshwater required across the three sites, around 80 percent will be directed to landscaping, kitchens and worker facilities, with water recycled and reused on-site. The facilities will have dedicated industrial water connections rather than drawing from municipal lines, a move aimed at preventing competition with households for drinking water.

The project will also follow a zero-discharge policy for domestic wastewater, which will be treated at an on-site sewage treatment plant and reused for landscape irrigation and flushing. No treated wastewater will be discharged into the Mudasarlova Reservoir. The measures are intended to reduce the campuses' impact on local water resources, including the reservoir and the adjoining Kambalakonda Wildlife Sanctuary.

The water question has become central to the debate over Andhra Pradesh's push to attract large data centre investments, as these facilities require substantial cooling capacity to support energy-intensive computing and AI workloads. The controversy intensified after the state approved Google's proposed AI data centre hub in Visakhapatnam, developed with AdaniConneX, with environmental activists questioning its proximity to the Mudasarlova Reservoir, a source of drinking water for the city, and the adjoining wildlife sanctuary. Critics have also raised concerns over the adequacy of environmental assessments and disclosure of operational water requirements, while the state government has defended the project, with IT Minister Nara Lokesh dismissing claims about its resource needs as misinformation. The government has said the proposed data centre ecosystem, if expanded to 6.5 gigawatts, could require around 3 TMC of water annually, while Google has said it plans to use advanced air-cooling technology.

Visakhapatnam is attracting a growing wave of digital infrastructure investment. Reliance Industries is developing a data centre campus near Bhogapuram and Polipalli, while Bharti Airtel is investing in terrestrial and metropolitan fibre networks and undersea cable landing infrastructure at Rambilli. AdaniConneX, a joint venture between Adani Enterprises and US-based EdgeConneX, is building a nationwide network of hyperscale data centres to serve demand for cloud computing, artificial intelligence and digital services, combining Adani's energy and infrastructure expertise with EdgeConneX's global development and operations experience. The Vizag campuses are expected to strengthen the city's digital infrastructure and support its emergence as a major data centre hub.