Google and TCS to Use Advanced Cooling for 1-GW Visakhapatnam Data Centre

Google’s massive $15 billion data centre project in Visakhapatnam, India, developed in partnership with Gautam Adani’s group, is facing mounting environmental opposition over local water scarcity and its proximity to the Kambalakonda Wildlife Sanctuary, even as the state government and courts weigh public interest litigations regarding its resource impact.

The Anatomy of a $15 Billion Silicon Footprint

Work is progressing rapidly on the hillside above Visakhapatnam, where earthmovers have stripped the terrain to red earth and terraced it into steps for Google’s largest-ever India investment. The marquee project, built in collaboration with Gautam Adani’s group, is projected to create up to 188,000 jobs. Yet, the physical realities of powering and cooling a facility of this magnitude have collided directly with local ecological limits.

In developing nations, the friction between digital infrastructure and municipal resources creates acute political flashpoints. Activists and children have marched through Visakhapatnam holding banners declaring “We cannot drink DATA” and spray-painting handcuffs on the Google logo, according to social media posts and reporting by Reuters. Public opposition centers on how a massive computing hub will alter local water tables and affect adjacent protected habitats.

Thermodynamics, Water, and the Air-Cooling Mandate

Cooling modern high-density server racks requires massive thermal dissipation. Traditional hyper-scale facilities consume millions of litres of water daily for evaporative cooling towers, putting severe pressure on municipal supplies. In Visakhapatnam, this tension is palpable. According to government figures cited by Green Visakha founder Raja Rama Mohan Roy, the city receives 410 million litres of water daily from its reservoirs and rivers against an actual requirement of 480 million litres, making water rationing a routine reality for its 2.5 million residents.

To mitigate these concerns, Google has committed to deploying advanced air-cooling infrastructure. Google stated to Reuters that the project will implement “advanced air cooling to protect vital local water resources.” Furthermore, the state government stated that no water designated for rural or residential purposes will be diverted to feed the data centres, seeking to quell public anxiety over reservoir depletion.

Legal Hurdles and Environmental Proximity

The project’s footprint is currently being tested across multiple legal fronts. The Andhra Pradesh High Court heard a public interest litigation filed by activist group Jal Biradari, which argues that the construction will strain water availability by placing undue stress on a nearby reservoir. An additional three cases have been filed at India’s environmental court by the Human Rights Forum, demanding a halt to construction over claims that the state cleared the project without adequately assessing the impact of drawing supply from rural drinking-water schemes.

Environmental groups have also raised alarms regarding noise pollution and habitat disruption. The site sits approximately 860 metres from the Kambalakonda Wildlife Sanctuary, a protected area that serves as a home for leopards and pangolins. In response to these specific ecological concerns, the state government maintained that the site is situated farther away than mandated by law. Google added that it will implement sound-dampening measures to ensure the facility operates as a “quiet, unobtrusive neighbour.”

The Broader Pushback Against Hyper-Scale Infrastructure

The friction in Andhra Pradesh reflects a global reckoning over the physical footprint of artificial intelligence and cloud computing. Rapid data centre buildouts face increasing resistance worldwide over surging electricity and water consumption. In the United States alone, opponents held 142 protests across 42 states in July, echoing similar anxieties about local resource exhaustion.

Photo: usnews.com

As the Andhra Pradesh High Court continues its hearings and legal challenges proceed through environmental courts, the project stands as an early test for massive tech investments navigating the complex physics of resource allocation in water-stressed regions.