Cyclone Michaung: State's data centres struggle to weather heavy storm

Connectivity drowns as servers bear the brunt of Cyclone Michaung's fury

Annavilaas in Jebel Ali Village, Dubai, is known across West Asia for its Indian delicacies. On December 5, however, visitors to the restaurant received an unexpected message from the managers: the hotel was unable to generate bills that day. The reason was also unusual — Cyclone Michaung had hit the coasts of Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh, causing the server in Chennai to go down due to floods.

When Business Standard called, the restaurant informed us that the problem was solved within hours, by Tuesday night. However, a cyclone in Chennai showing its colours in Dubai is an example of the state fast becoming a hub of data centres. Chennai has large data centre players such as NTT, CtrlS, and Microsoft, among others.
 

The Japanese major NTT not only has a data centre in Chennai but also has its new subsea cable system — MIST. The cable spans 8,100 kilometre and will connect Malaysia, India, Singapore, and Thailand.
 

Responding to an email sent by Business Standard, CtrlS said: “Our Chennai facility is not operational yet at the moment. Once operational, our facility, designed and constructed to meet the highest standards of resilience, can withstand adverse weather conditions.”
 

“Additionally, remote access capabilities enable data centre personnel to monitor and manage operations and make necessary adjustments from offsite locations, further ensuring the continuity of data and business operations," it added.
 

The cyclone also impacted the operations of global capability centres (GCCs) in the state, with many activating their business continuity plans (BCP). With power supply erratic and floods making travel impossible for many companies, work-from-home (WFH) mandates were also of no use.
 

Chennai is the centre for GCCs of global firms like Standard Chartered, PayPal, AstraZeneca, World Bank, Pfizer, Caterpillar, and others.
 

Standard Chartered Global Business Services (GBS), which has a large operation in Chennai, had to activate its BCP mandate. “The safety of our employees is the foremost priority, and they have been advised to avoid taking any risk, including travelling. Standard Chartered GBS has a robust BCP that has been activated for Chennai operations.”
 

It further added: “As part of this plan, delivery of critical services has been ensured across GBS units and where required, recovery measures such as split operations and cross-border support from other hubs were initiated. We continue to closely watch the situation and will review the BCP status daily.” 
 

Gopal Srinivasan, chairman, TVS Capital Funds, in a tweet on X (formerly Twitter) posted: “Poor city management during the recent rain highlighted business continuity challenges in Chennai. With no power; no internet; and no cellular service; WFH was not possible. As a major GCC and information technology-enabled services (ITeS) hub, this raises the question of Chennai’s viability as an ITeS/IT GCC.”

According to a JLL report, the year 2024 is expected to see the highest capacity addition of 277 megawatt (Mw) in the data centre. Of this, 77 per cent of the new additions will happen in Mumbai and Chennai. By 2026 $4.4 billion capital expenditure investment is expected in the sector, of this, $1.3 billion is expected for Chennai.

The city has a capacity of around 87 Mw, including nine assets and five cable landings, making it one of the most important destinations for data centres, after Mumbai with nine cable landings and 392 Mw capacity.

After the cyclone warning came, the Tamil Nadu State Disaster Management Authority issued an advisory to private companies in Chennai, Tiruvallur, Kancheepuram, and Chengalpattu districts, requesting them to advise their employees to work remotely.

On Wednesday, cyclonic storm Michaung weakened into a depression and moved northwards. It is further expected to move northwards and further weaken.

On the other hand, the floods also affected container traffic at Chennai Port.

“In terms of damages, there was not much impact on the port. Because the Kalmandapam substation is down, where we get power supply, cranes are unable to operate for containers. Other port operations are normal. By Wednesday evening, they are expected to restore power. There is a temporary setback due to its impact on container traffic,” said Sunil Paliwal, chairperson of Chennai Port Trust.

Corporates are also extending their support to relief operations. Hyundai Motor India Foundation on Wednesday announced relief support amounting to Rs 3 crore to support communities affected by Cyclone Michaung in Tamil Nadu. The company’s onsite teams are working along with state government authorities to deliver emergency relief, including food, water, shelter, medical assistance, and other essential commodities to affected communities.

“Hyundai Motor India has also set up a dedicated relief task force which will work closely with the district administrations to offer support to the needy. For our beloved customers, we have ramped up our service support to flood-affected customers in Tamil Nadu. We have also deployed a dedicated emergency roadside assistance service team to support our customers,” said Unsoo Kim, managing director and chief executive officer, Hyundai Motor India.