Information technology giant Google has sought to allay concerns over the environmental impact of its proposed 1 GW Google AI Hub in Andhra Pradesh’s Visakhapatnam, particularly its water and electricity consumption.
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The AI Hub, being developed under Google’s broader “Bharat AI Shakti” vision, represents an initial investment commitment of US$15 billion over five years from 2026 to 2030.
Alexander Smith, Principal, Global Infrastructure and Energy, Asia Pacific, Google, said the data centre campuses planned as part of the AI Hub would use advanced air-cooling technology instead of water-based systems.
“It is a deliberate design decision for the Visakhapatnam AI hub. We shall restrict the facility’s water requirement largely to non-cooling uses such as restrooms. The resulting water footprint would be comparable to that of any standard office building,” Smith said in an exclusive interaction with HT.
He said Google would conduct extensive research before selecting a data-centre site, including assessments of cooling architecture and water-related risks. “Google’s watershed experts undertake a study on current and projected water demand against available supplies, drawing on historical data, including groundwater and stream-flow records extending up to 100 years. If an assessment identifies a watershed as being at high risk of scarcity, the company said it switches to alternative cooling configurations,” he said.
Google has also committed to replenish 120% of water consumed for non-cooling requirements across its operations by 2030. The company said the replenishment benefits would be quantified under the Volumetric Water Benefit Accounting standard and independently verified.
“Google is also planning integrated watershed-management measures, including rainwater catchment systems on data-centre buildings, groundwater recharge infrastructure, water pumps and water ATMs,” he said.
On concerns over the hub’s power requirements, Smith said Google would pay for the electricity consumed and fully fund new power infrastructure directly required for its operations, including transmission lines and substations.
“Our data centres are designed to operate with high energy efficiency. As part of its clean-energy strategy in India, Google has entered into long-term power purchase agreements for 150 MW of new solar capacity with ReNew Energy and 125.4 MW of new wind and solar capacity with CleanMax,” he said.
Google also plans to invest in additional clean-energy projects in Andhra Pradesh, including pumped-hydro, solar and wind projects, beyond the power generation directly required for the AI Hub.
“The Visakhapatnam AI Hub is planned as a broader AI infrastructure ecosystem rather than merely a data centre. It includes a major international subsea connectivity gateway, data centre campuses, an AI Industrial Corridor, logistics infrastructure and power facilities.”
On allegations of inadequate employment generation vis-à-vis concessions granted by the state government, Smith said construction of a typical data-centre facility over three to five years would employ an average of about 4,200 construction workers annually.
“Once operational, Google estimates that every direct job at a data centre supports nine additional jobs in the surrounding community. Facilities are designed to operate for at least 20 to 30 years and would generate high-skilled positions in data-centre operations, network deployment, mechanical and electrical engineering, logistics and procurement,” he said, adding that a development of this scale could generate approximately US$688 million in local economic activity annually.
“The Visakhapatnam hub is intended to provide the infrastructure needed to support the rapid adoption of AI in India, where, according to the company, 92 per cent of workers use AI in their jobs,” he added.
ENVIRONMENTALISTS CRY FOUL
Since Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu laid the foundation for the Visakhapatnam AI Hub on April 28, 2026, environmentalists have raised concerns over its potential environmental impact, pointing to resistance to data centres worldwide.
Former Union energy secretary and environmentalist E A S Sarma said a 1 GW data centre consumes more than 20 million kilowatt-hours of electricity and 30 million litres of water daily. “They are heat islands that impact the ambient temperature in their neighbourhood. They also cause noise pollution. Wherever they are proposed to be set up, especially in the USA, the local communities are vehemently opposing them,” he said.
He alleged that, faced with such resistance in the USA, Google had chosen India because local data sovereignty laws and regulations are weak, environmental regulation fragile and crony capitalism rampant.
Human Rights Forum’s Andhra Pradesh unit general secretary Y Rajesh alleged that the AI Hub was affecting a landscape whose streams and natural drainage feed downstream water systems. “Projects of this extraordinary scale have been processed under Category B2, thereby avoiding the full Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and public-hearing process that would otherwise entail greater environmental scrutiny,” he said.
Rajesh also expressed concerns over water and power consumption. “The state government is misleading the people that its water requirements are met from the industrial allocation of Godavari water from Polavaram. What priority will it enjoy over agriculture, drinking water and existing industries?” he asked.
He also disputed the claim that Google would source at least 70% of its electricity from clean energy. “The environmental costs of generating and transmitting electricity cannot simply be erased by putting the word ‘green’ before it,” Rajesh argued.
On August 24, the state high court directed the government to ensure that construction of the proposed Google AI Hub is carried out only after obtaining all necessary legal and environmental permissions.
Reacting to a petition filed by environmentalist Bolisetty Satyanarayana, a bench headed by Chief Justice Lisa Gill, however, refused to stop the work. It asked the government to ensure that construction complies with all applicable regulations and file a consolidated response from the departments involved in granting approvals.