• HCLTech, Sarvam and the Odisha government have signed an MoU for a data centre at the Odisha Sovereign AI Park in Bhubaneswar

• The project has a planned outlay of ₹14,257 crore, but its capacity and construction timetable remain undisclosed


The fact

HCLTech plans to establish an AI data centre at the proposed Odisha Sovereign AI Park in Bhubaneswar after signing a memorandum of understanding with the state government and Indian AI company Sarvam. The project has a planned capital outlay of ₹14,257 crore, including financial assistance from the Odisha government.

HCLTech said the facility would combine its data-centre and AI services with Sarvam’s foundation models to support public- and private-sector organisations. Sarvam said in February that the wider sovereign AI park was planned as a 50MW facility, but HCLTech has not disclosed how much of that capacity its data centre would use. The partners have also not provided details of the first construction phase, power supply or target opening date.

The assessment

The MoU establishes the partners and spending framework for the project, but it does not yet define the physical data-centre build. The 50MW figure applies to the wider sovereign AI park rather than HCLTech’s proposed facility, so the capacity planned for HCLTech remains unclear.

The MoU establishes the partners and spending framework, but it does not yet define the physical build. The 50MW figure applies to the wider sovereign AI park rather than HCLTech's facility, so the capacity planned for this project remains unclear.

For BTW readers, the project is notable as HCLTech's entry into the data-centre market, but the MoU is several steps short of construction. The next meaningful step will be a defined first phase that connects the ₹14,257 crore investment to a specific amount of capacity and the infrastructure needed to deliver it.

What to watch

Watch for HCLTech and the Odisha government to disclose the first-phase capacity, power plan and construction timetable. A contractor appointment, equipment order or confirmed start of work would provide clearer evidence that the project is moving beyond the MoU stage.