Google defends $15 billion Vizag AI hub amid water concerns, protests

BENGALURU, Oct 11 — A new Google AI and data centre construction site in Visakhapatnam, India, is drawing criticism from locals concerned about its potential environmental and community impacts. However, the tech giant insists its facility will utilize air cooling systems, not water, and will not strain an already water-scarce region.

Google's head of infrastructure and energy for the Asia-Pacific region, Alexander Smith, addressed public concerns regarding the project. The company conducts comprehensive environmental assessments before beginning construction, including evaluations of grid stability, power supply, water risk, ecology, acoustics, and more. If the project faces insufficient power or power diversion issues, Google will either develop additional power or refrain from building there.

The data centre, set to become operational in 2028, will be Google's largest AI hub outside the United States. This project is part of a US$15 billion investment in the region and is one of several major tech sites planned in Visakhapatnam. However, local activists have called for a moratorium on new data centres until more evidence of their impact on the environment and local communities is available.

Google's water assessment for Visakhapatnam indicated pressure on the local watershed, leading to the selection of advanced air cooling over water cooling for the facility. The company is committed to replenishing 120% of the freshwater it consumes across its operations by 2030. Google does not disclose site-level capacity figures for power but mentions that it fully funds the cost of required power infrastructure upgrades and plans to invest in new clean energy projects in Visakhapatnam.

Google chose Visakhapatnam due to its strategic location, proximity to customers and users, access to talent, potential for clean energy, and opportunities to establish beneficial partnerships with local communities. The city's coastline also allows undersea cables to link Visakhapatnam to South Africa and Australia, positioning Andhra Pradesh as India's third major subsea hub.

While data centre opponents argue that the benefits of such facilities rarely trickle down to local residents, Google claims that a development of this scale is projected to generate approximately US$688 million in local economic activity annually. For every job inside a Google data centre, the company supports nine additional jobs in the surrounding community.

Over a typical 3-5 year construction period, an average Google data centre development employs about 4,200 construction workers annually, and hundreds of specialist on-site roles once the facility is live.