Nxtra by Airtel, the data centre arm of Bharti Airtel, is expanding beyond key metros with a focus on regional empowerment, as demand from OTT platforms and CDN providers continues to surge. According to the CEO of Nxtra by Airtel, the company has recently expanded its edge presence in key cities to make digital infrastructure more accessible in regional areas, supporting India's digital growth.
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Nxtra Scales Edge to Empower Regional India
Ashish Arora, Chief Executive Officer of Airtel-owned Nxtra, stated that with the growing demand from OTT platforms and content delivery network providers for low-latency, high-performance content delivery, edge data centre networks have become crucial. The company currently operates over 120 edge facilities across more than 65 cities, complemented by 14 hyperscale data centres, ensuring seamless streaming experiences even in smaller towns.
"We are focusing on regional empowerment and have expanded our edge presence in key cities like Agartala, Patna, Guwahati, Sambalpur, Gangaganj, and Vijayawada. These state-of-the-art facilities bring digital infrastructure far beyond the metros to users in tier 3 and tier 4 cities, reducing latency and bandwidth costs—especially for live and high-definition streaming," the CEO said, according to a LinkedIn post by Nxtra by Airtel.
Also Read: Nxtra by Airtel Joins RE100, Commits to 100 Percent Renewable Energy
Commitment to Sustainability
Regarding its sustainability initiatives, Nxtra by Airtel joined the RE100 initiative in 2024, committing to sourcing 100 percent renewable electricity with the goal of becoming net-zero by 2031.
As part of these efforts, Nxtra recently hosted RE100 core members and sustainability leaders at its Whitefield Data Center to showcase its renewable energy initiatives, including the installation of hydrogen-ready fuel cells.
In 2022, Airtel announced Nxtra's partnership with Bloom Energy to deploy low-environmental impact fuel cells at its data centre in Karnataka. With this move, Nxtra became the first data centre company in India to adopt hydrogen-ready fuel cell technology with low carbon emissions.
Also Read: Nxtra by Airtel Boosts Renewable Energy Use by 41 Percent
Furthermore, Nxtra is officially enrolled with the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) and is recognised as a Committed Company under the Services Pathway for both Near-Term and Net Zero targets, the company said.
World Environment Day Initiative
On World Environment Day, Nxtra by Airtel embraced the theme 'Beating Plastic Pollution'. In collaboration with its teams, partners, and customers, Nxtra conducted tree plantation drives across all its sites, planting over 100 saplings with the support of more than 350 participants.
Also Read: Nxtra by Airtel Plans to Double Its Capacity to Meet Growing Demand
Investment to Expand Capacity by 2027
Looking ahead, Nxtra will invest USD 600 million to scale its capacity to nearly 400 MW by 2027, aiming to position India as a key player in the global digital and AI infrastructure landscape.
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