Amazon water positive in India amid data centre scrutiny

Amazon reported it became water positive in India in 2025, returning 120% of the water withdrawn for its direct operations. The figure covers corporate offices, fulfilment centres and data centres across Maharashtra, Karnataka, Telangana, Delhi NCR, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu.

The company measured progress by comparing the volume of water replenished through conservation, restoration and recharge projects with the water withdrawn for operations. Amazon reported that results are verified through internal and third‑party audits and that it has committed more than ₹62 crore to water stewardship work across the listed states.

Amazon outlined projects expected to replenish more than 4 billion litres of water annually. Measures include watershed restoration, lake rejuvenation, groundwater recharge, efficient irrigation and water quality improvement. A Yamuna watershed project in Delhi is expected to add over 400 million litres a year through groundwater recharge and water quality measures. The company is also supporting work in the Adyar watershed around Chennai.

Amazon said its data centres in India do not use water for cooling. Most water use at its facilities relates to employee needs such as drinking water, kitchens and restrooms. To reduce consumption the company has installed low‑flow fixtures, fitted smart water meters to detect leaks and expanded on‑site sewage treatment plants, which recycled an estimated 298 million litres in 2025 for irrigation and toilet flushing. Rainwater harvesting systems collected about 178 million litres in 2025.

Amazon Web Services has a separate global goal of becoming water positive by 2030 and reported it had reached about 75% of that target. In 2025 AWS returned three litres of water for every four litres used in its direct data‑centre operations. In India, AWS has partnered with organisations including WaterAid, Water.org and SEARCH on groundwater recharge, water access projects and support for farmers and communities around Hyderabad and Mumbai.

Globally, Amazon reported it has launched more than 50 water replenishment projects expected to return over 24 billion litres annually through watershed restoration, leak reduction and improved water access and quality. The announcement comes as investors and environmental groups increase scrutiny of the resource demands tied to expanding cloud and artificial intelligence infrastructure.

Abhinav Singh, Vice President, Operations, Amazon India, APAC, Middle East and Türkiye, said: “Water is fundamental to the communities where we operate, and we recognise the scale of India’s water challenge. Achieving water positive in India is a significant milestone. It reflects years of work to improve water efficiency across our operations while investing in large‑scale community projects, from lake restoration to watershed development.” He added the company remains committed to improving water quality and helping build more water‑resilient communities.

Amazon plans to invest more than $35 billion in India by 2030, including spending on cloud infrastructure and artificial intelligence capabilities as it expands its local presence.