Power Grid’s POWERTEL set to enter data centre business. Here are the details

• Under the expansion plan, Power Grid will set up a data centre at Manesar in Gurugram at a cost of Rs 322 crore
• A data centre is a building, a dedicated space within a building, or a group of buildings used to house critical applications and data

New Delhi: The Board of Directors of Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd (PGCIL) has approved a proposal for the expansion of Power Grid Telecom into data centre business. Under the expansion plan, Power Grid will set up a data centre at Manesar in Gurugram at a cost of Rs 322 crore. In a regulatory filing to the stock exchanges on Thursday, Power Grid said, "POWERGRID has approved investment proposal for 'Expansion of POWERGRID Telecom into Data Centre Business and to establish a Data Centre at Manesar at an estimated cost of about ~322 crore (including GST)'."

A data centre is a building, a dedicated space within a building, or a group of buildings used to house critical applications and data. A data center's design is based on a network of computing and storage resources that enable the delivery of shared applications and data. The foray into this new segment will open new arenas opportunities for the telecom subsidiary of the Maharatna PSU. 

Power Grid, with its brand name 'POWERTEL' in Telecom business, is the only telecom service provider in the country having pan-India overhead optic fibre network using optical ground wire on power transmission lines. Power Grid has an all-India broadband telecom network of 72,126 Km.

PowerGrid was granted a unified licence with national long-distance and internet service provider authorisation to provide telecom services in 2017. The state-run power transmission utility provides telecom towers and optical-fibre cable infrastructure (for internet services) to service providers and other firms for commercial use. This is a separate segment of revenue for the company. 

(PSU Watch– India's Business News centre that places the spotlight on PSUs, Bureaucracy, Defence and Public Policy is now on Google News. Click here to follow. Also, join PSU Watch Channel in your Telegram. You may also follow us on Twitter here and stay updated.)