Singapore’s CapitaLand Investment Unveils India Business Park, Data Centre

Singapore property heavyweight CapitaLand Investment (CLI) continues to deepen its presence in India as it opens the first phase of a business park redevelopment project in Hyderabad and kicks off construction of a 40 megawatt data centre on the same campus.

With Hyderabad home to an estimated 1,500 tech firms employing more than 9 million workers, according to government figures, CLI this week said that it has commenced operation of the first phase of its redeveloped International Tech Park Hyderabad with the 1.4 million square foot (130,000 square metre) grade A office building already fully occupied.

“Our investment in Hyderabad demonstrates our commitment to harness the potential of the city’s IT/ITES infrastructure and be a strong partner both for the government and for corporations, especially in the business parks and data centre sectors,” said Sanjeev Dasgupta, chief executive officer of both CLI India and CapitaLand India Trust.

The tech park and its data centre component are the latest in a string of investments by the SGX-listed fund manager in the subcontinent, with the announcement coming one month after CLI raised S$368 million ($269 million) for the first close of its CapitaLand India Growth Fund 2, which aims to develop more commercial projects in the country.

Global Tenants

“Through our strong global tenant network and deep local operational expertise, we have achieved 100 percent lease commitment from some of the world’s leading corporations for Phase 1 of the redeveloped ITPH,” said Gauri Shankar Nagabhushanam, CEO for CLI’s India business parks.

The 14-storey first building in the redevelopment scheme incorporates 110,000 square feet of amenities including flexible office space, a gym, meeting rooms, private dining areas, food courts and a cafeteria. The firm also plans to add a rooftop sports facility and game courts.

Tenants in the property include IT companies and service providers Cloud4C Services, Tata Consultancy and VXI Global, as well as consultancy firms Ernst & Young and ANSR Global Corp. Also among the new occupiers are entertainment giant Warner Bros Discovery and US biopharmaceutical titan Bristol Myers Squibb.

CLI said the asset also leverages green features including rooftop solar panels, water-conserving fittings and equipment, rainwater recycling, organic waste converters and sewage treatment equipment which have allowed it to achieve a LEED Gold certification under the US Green Building Council regime for sustainable properties.

Multi-Phase Project

CLI-managed CapitaLand India Trust is backing the redevelopment of International Tech Park Hyderabad, which will nearly double the leasable area in the 20-acre (8.1-hectare) complex from 2.6 million square feet currently to 4.9 million square feet.

As of the end of 2022 the complex was valued at INR 23.18 billion ($280 million), based on the REIT’s first-half financial report, although the total redevelopment cost has not yet been made public.

With the first building in the complex now fully committed, CLI is set to focus on continued expansion of the park, which is planned to span 4.9 million square feet of office space in the Hyderabad suburb of Madhapur when completed.

With CapitaLand developing the project in Telangana state on a seven to 10 year time frame, the company expects International Tech Park Hyderabad to be home to over 50,000 professionals in IT and IT-enabled services when completed.

The company broke ground on its 40MW data centre within the Hyderabad Park on the same day that it announced the opening of the first phase.

The 300,000 square foot facility is positioned to meet the requirements of international hyperscalers and large enterprises and joins two existing data centres in CapitaLand India Trust’s portfolio – one each in Navi Mumbai and Chennai. The trust also plans an additional data centre in its International Tech Park Bangalore.

Bullish on India

The Hyderabad tech park is one of CLI’s 12 business parks across six cities in India, which boast average occupancy of nearly 90 percent and are home to over 150,000 professionals at both local and multinational firms, according to Dasgupta.

The firm recently revealed that it has received backing for its India efforts from Mitsubishi Estates, which took a cornerstone stake in its CapitaLand India Growth Fund 2

The Japanese investment giant committed to a 50 percent stake in the fund following its S$263 million investment as revealed in the first closing of the vehicle last month. CLI aims to raise as much as S$525 million for the fund, which is currently seeded with a 70 percent interest in the International Tech Park Chennai, Radial Road (ITPC-Radial Road) development project.