The Noida Authority has approved the sublease of a 10-acre plot in Sector 80 to Noida Data Centre Limited, a special purpose vehicle (SPV) formed by Adani Enterprises Limited (AEL) and EdgeConneX under their joint venture, AdaniConnex.

The decision was made during a board meeting chaired by Uttar Pradesh Chief Secretary Manoj Kumar Singh, who also serves as the chairman of the Noida Authority. This approval clears the way for the establishment of a data centre in Sector 80, a plan that had previously been rejected due to conditions in the original lease deed.

Lokesh M, CEO, Noida Authority, confirmed that the board had discussed and approved the project after deliberations in July 2024. He noted that the land in Sector 80 had already been allotted for this purpose.

After the initial rejection of Adani Enterprises' request to sublease the land, the company appealed to the Uttar Pradesh government. The state?s industrial development department reviewed the case and granted approval based on provisions in the UP Data Centre Policy of 2022. This policy allows sublease permission for data centre projects without levying a transfer fee.

The Adani Group had originally executed a lease deed for the land in 2021 at a cost of Rs 700 million, with the intention of developing a data centre. AdaniConnex, a 50-50 joint venture between Adani Enterprises and global data centre operator EdgeConneX, was established in February 2021 to set up data centres across India.

Despite repeated attempts, the Adani Group could not be reached for comment. (Hindustan Times)