ABB India: Data centres are creating a new demand cycle

ABB India: Data centres are creating a new demand cycle ABB India Limited is seeing strong demand for electrification solutions from data centres, renewables and infrastructure. Data centres were among the key drivers of ABB India's order growth, making power infrastructure an increasingly important growth opportunity. **What is changing:** ABB India received orders worth ₹4,363 crore in Q2 CY2026, up 50% year on year. Data-centre orders included low- and medium-voltage switchgear, ring-main units and smart power products. Its H1 order backlog reached ₹11,898 crore, up 22%. The opportunity extends beyond one quarter. ABB is investing about $75 million in India during 2026 to expand manufacturing and R&D across five locations, including capacity for data centres, renewable energy and metro infrastructure. Around 85% of ABB's products and solutions sold in India are already manufactured locally. This matters because data centres require reliable, efficient and increasingly sophisticated power infrastructure. As computing requirements rise, demand for switchgear, power distribution, automation and energy-efficiency solutions can increase alongside data-centre capacity. **My view:** The interesting part of ABB India's data-centre opportunity is that it adds to an existing electrification business rather than creating an entirely new revenue stream. The key is whether data-centre orders remain large enough to support sustained base-order growth without creating excessive dependence on a single end market. ABB's diversified exposure across renewables, metals, mining, buildings and infrastructure provides some balance. **What I'm watching:** data-centre orders, order backlog, electrification margins, capacity utilisation and recurring base orders.