Key Takeaways
- Zero-debt milestone reached: Net debt has been below ₹50 crore for five straight quarters, and the company is now net cash positive after a ₹1,100 crore QIP and ₹125 crore debt prepayment.
- Data Center is the growth engine: 28 MW delivered in Q2, with a clear path to 63 MW operational by December 2026 and 117 MW by FY28; management expects the segment to scale similarly to the company's own 6x revenue growth over the last 4.5 years.
- Sovereign Cloud launched and scaling: The Ashok Cloud, a B2B sovereign cloud, is now live and priced at roughly 50% of market cost while still delivering 75% EBITDA margins, matching colocation profitability.
- Real estate launches are on track: 0.26 crore sq ft of residential launches planned for the year, with RERA received for one project and approvals advancing for two more, all targeting the supply-constrained luxury markets of Gurugram and Delhi.
- What to watch next quarter: The pace of Data Center handovers and revenue conversion from the 22 MW delivered, the MeitY empanelment decision expected in November, and the launch of the first Group Housing project.
Data Center: Delivery, Demand & Economics
- 28 MW delivered, more coming: The company showcased its 28 MW facility in August 2025, added 7 MW at Panchkula, and enhanced Manesar from 6 MW to 21 MW IT load; an additional 35 MW development has commenced, along with the Rai, Sonipat project starting at 20 MW with a total planned capacity of 200 MW.
- Handover timeline is tight: Of the 22 MW added, 2 MW has been handed over and 8 MW is totally handed; the remaining handovers will complete within Q3, with full revenue recognition in Q4.
- Demand is not the bottleneck: Management sees no dearth of demand in North India, citing data localization trends: India generates 28% of the world's data but houses only 1%, and the Data Protection Act is expected to multiply demand further.
- Client mix is shifting: Colocation is currently 75% government and 25% private, while Cloud is split 50-50; additional clients have been added but names remain undisclosed due to NDAs.
- Taxation benefit is proposed, not in effect: The government has proposed a taxation benefit for the Data Center segment applicable to both Colocation and Cloud; management is hopeful but it is not yet implemented.
- Colocation to Cloud conversion is built in: The company can convert colocation capacity to Cloud as demand grows, and expects the Cloud ratio to increase once colocation cash flows improve from next year.
Amit Sarin: "India today generates 28% of the data in the world and India houses today only 1%. And today, all countries today are realizing and they want to get their data back and keep it in their own country. Unfortunately, even our country is doing it. So, with this happening, this data eventually has to come back to the country. So, we do not see any dearth of demand here."
Cloud Services: Sovereign Play & Margin Structure
- Ashok Cloud is live and cost-competitive: The sovereign cloud, named after the Founder Chairman, started B2B operations in October 2024 and is priced at roughly 50% of market cost while still delivering good margins.
- Service stack is expanding: The company started with Infrastructure as a Service and is now offering Platform as a Service including containerized services; these additional services are not included in current revenue projections, and management notes that PaaS revenues can double IaaS revenues.
- Cloud achieves 75% EBITDA margin parity with Colocation: Cloud revenues are much higher than colocation, absorbing the electricity cost that is passed through in colocation but included in Cloud's turnkey pricing; management states the 75% EBITDA margin will only go up, not down.
- Pricing is protected from power cost swings: Cloud contracts include clauses that prices are based on current market cost; if electricity prices rise, the customer is charged more, and if they fall, the benefit can be passed on.
- Customers choose Cloud to avoid capex and complexity: The value proposition includes avoiding hardware capex, getting bulk OEM license pricing, receiving 24/7 managed services, and not needing an in-house IT team; management argues 99% of people do not want the headache of running their own servers.
- MeitY empanelment is imminent: The company has applied for MeitY empanelment as a Cloud service provider; the last phase of audit has been completed successfully, and approval is expected within November.
Ashim Sarin: "Colocation is basically the infrastructure that we give to the customers... And Cloud services, we have got infrastructure as a service and platform, and then finally software as a service, and then managed services. So, sky is the limit as far as Cloud services are concerned."
Real Estate: Launches, Luxury Positioning & Sequencing
- Three residential projects in advanced launch preparation: Phase-IV of Anant Raj Estate over 6.075 acres with 5 lakh sq ft development potential and RERA already received; a high-rise over 0.1 crore sq ft on 5.1 acres at an advanced stage of approval; and a third project over 5.5 acres with 0.1 crore sq ft potential, with license expected in Q4.
- Projects are sequenced to avoid cannibalization: Independent Floor and Group Housing target different segments, different markets, and different buyer types, so they will not be launched together.
- Luxury micro-market positioning: The company operates on Golf Course Extension Road, the most luxurious micro-market in Gurugram, where supply is very limited and demand is always higher than the rest of Gurugram; ticket sizes range from ₹50 crore to ₹100 crore.
- Delhi entry underway: The first Delhi development spans 7 lakh sq ft across commercial, service apartments, and hotel, with the first phase targeted for completion by FY28.
- Circle rate revisions are a non-event: The revision in circle rates is routine and does not impact pricing for organized players; the company's focus remains on Haryana and the Data Center business.
- Revenue recognition is percentage completion: The majority of residential revenue is booked on a percentage completion basis from Anant Raj Estate, with contributions from Ashok Estate and Data Center.
Balance Sheet & Capital Allocation
- Zero-debt status is a stated commitment: The company has been net debt below ₹50 crore for five consecutive quarters and is now net cash positive after the QIP and debt prepayment; management commits to maintaining this status going forward.
- QIP proceeds deployed into Data Center: The ₹1,100 crore QIP was successfully completed in Q2, and promoters converted ₹100 crore warrants at ₹730 in March 2025, ahead of the September 2026 deadline, with the cash used for the Data Center business.
- Sufficient capital for the 63 MW plan: Management states there is no need to raise additional capital for the 63 MW plan, and no need to take on debt; the philosophy is that real estate should be as low on debt as possible.
- Cash flows from Data Center begin next year: Management expects cash flows to start improving and contributing from the Data Center segment starting next year.
Amit Sarin: "And as it is, we feel that our backbone is still real estate, which will always be. And we feel that real estate should be as low on debt as possible."
Revenue Trajectory & Segment Reporting
- Data Center revenue is on a familiar growth path: Management draws a parallel to Anant Raj's own transformation from a ₹200 crore turnover 4.5 years ago to over ₹1,200 crore now, implying the Data Center segment will scale similarly.
- Q2 Data Center revenue split: Colocation contributed ₹21.6 crores and Cloud contributed ₹13.87 crores in Q2 FY26.
- ₹1,200 crore target from 63 MW: A substantial amount of this revenue is expected in FY 2026-27, with the full run-rate achieved in FY 2027-28.
- No segmental breakup yet: Segmental reporting is required only when a segment reaches 10% of total revenue; Data Center revenue is ₹58 crore against total revenue of roughly ₹1,200 crore, so the threshold has not been triggered.
- Management declines to give forward guidance: When asked for FY26 sales and PAT guidance, future revenue projections, or a revenue split between Data Center and Cloud by FY28, management consistently declined, stating they cannot give future numbers.
Amit Sarin: "it is going to be something very similar to what you saw in Anant Raj 4 - 4 and half years back when the complete turnover of Anant Raj was 200 crores. And from there, you have seen up to Q2, we have already done 1200 crores and something."
Guidance & Commitments
| Commitment | Specifics | Timeline |
|---|---|---|
| Zero-debt status maintained | Net debt below ₹50 crore, net cash positive | Ongoing, reaffirmed for the future |
| Data Center capacity | 63 MW operational (49 MW Colocation, 14 MW Cloud) | December 2026 |
| Data Center capacity | 117 MW operational (87 MW Colocation, 36 MW Cloud) | FY28 |
| Data Center capacity | 307 MW fully operational | Financial Year 2031-32 |
| 22 MW revenue recognition | Handovers complete within Q3, full revenue in Q4 | Q3/Q4 FY26 |
| MeitY empanelment | Approval as Cloud service provider | Expected November 2025 |
| Real estate launches | 0.26 crore sq ft planned for the year | FY26 |
| Third Group Housing project license | License for 5.21 acres | Expected Q4 FY26 |
| Third luxury Group Housing launch | Project launch | First half of next financial year |
| Delhi development first phase | 7 lakh sq ft (commercial + service apartments + hotel) | Completion by FY28 |
| Conference call cadence | Concall every second quarter, earning meetings continue | Going forward |
Key Metrics
| Metric | Q2 FY26 |
|---|---|
| Revenue from operations | ₹630.79 cr, up 23% YoY |
| Data Center revenue | ₹35.47 cr (Colocation ₹21.6 cr, Cloud ₹13.87 cr) |
| EBITDA | ₹177.94 cr, up 43.85% YoY |
| EBITDA margin | 27.76%, up from 23.62% YoY |
| PAT | ₹138.18 cr, up 30.79% YoY |
| PAT margin | 21.56%, up from 20.17% YoY |
| H1 FY26 revenue from operations | ₹1,223.2 cr, up 24.22% YoY |
| H1 FY26 PAT | ₹264.08 cr, up 34.28% YoY |
| Net debt | Below ₹50 cr, fifth consecutive quarter |
| Data Center EBITDA margin | 75% for H1 FY26 |
| Data Center capacity delivered | 28 MW IT load, delivered in Q2 |
| Data Center capacity target | 63 MW operational by December 2026 |
| Colocation handed over | 8 MW fully handed over |
| Cloud handed over | 0.5 MW fully handed over |
| Colocation rental income | ~₹90 lakh per month per MW |
| Cloud revenue | ~₹12 cr per month per MW |
| Data Center capital employed | ₹700 cr total, ₹187 cr added in H1 |
| QIP completed | ₹1,100 cr |
| Debt prepaid | ₹125 cr |
| Planned real estate launches | 0.26 cr sq ft for FY26 |
| Group Housing I collections | ₹428 cr collected out of ₹1,850 cr total |
| Group Housing I cost spent | ₹168 cr spent, ₹322 cr yet to be spent |
| Additional capex per MW for Data Center | ₹26 cr (existing buildings already qualified) |
| Colocation client mix | 75% government, 25% private |
| Cloud client mix | 50% government, 50% private |