Adani Expands Footprint Across Non-BJP States With ₹5 Lakh Cr Investment Pipeline

The Adani Group is expanding its presence across Congress-led and other non-Bharatiya Janata Party-ruled states, with the conglomerate pursuing or executing projects spanning roads, ports, power, renewable energy, cement and data centres totalling about ₹5 lakh crore as state governments seek private capital for economic development, infrastructure and job creation.

The ports-to-energy and airports group, WHICH was once considered close to the BJP, now has a project pipeline that increasingly cuts across political lines, with governments from Karnataka and Telangana to Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Bihar and Andhra Pradesh seeking investments from the conglomerate, sources said.

In Karnataka, Adani Enterprises emerged as the lowest bidder for both packages of the proposed 16.75-kilometre north-south tunnel road connecting Hebbal and Central Silk Board in Bengaluru. The company bid ₹22,267 crore for the project, ₹3,500 crore lower than the second-lowest bidder, according to sources.

The contract has not yet been finalised.

The project, designed to tackle Bengaluru's chronic traffic congestion, has become a politically sensitive test of the Karnataka government's willingness to proceed with a large private-sector infrastructure concession despite the bid exceeding its own estimate.

Group chairman Gautam Adani had met Karnataka Chief Minister DK Shivakumar in Bengaluru last month, shortly after the bid became public.

Adani already has a substantial presence in Karnataka, including the 1,200-megawatt Udupi power plant and Mangaluru International Airport.

In Kerala, Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone developed Vizhinjam International Seaport, a deep-water container transhipment facility that was initiated under the state's previous Left Democratic Front government and continued under the current Congress-led administration.

The group has committed further capital to Vizhinjam. In January 2026, it launched the second phase of the port's development, with an additional ₹16,000 crore investment that would take cumulative investment in the project to about ₹30,000 crore.

Adani also operates Thiruvananthapuram International Airport and broke ground in 2025 on a more than ₹600 crore logistics park at Kalamassery in Kochi. The 70-acre project is expected to create more than 1,500 jobs, according to sources.

In Telangana, the Congress government signed four memoranda of understanding with Adani Group companies in January 2024 for investments totalling ₹12,400 crore. The proposed projects cover data centres, energy storage, defence manufacturing and other businesses.

Tamil Nadu, previously governed by the DMK and now by TVK - both politically aligned with the Congress- has also attracted a significant Adani investment pipeline. The group announced MoUs worth more than ₹42,700 crore in 2024, including ₹24,500 crore for three pumped-storage projects, ₹13,200 crore for a hyperscale data centre and ₹3,500 crore for cement grinding units.

Adani Enterprises has separately secured the Chennai Outer Ring Road operation, maintenance and tolling concession with a ₹2,511 crore financial bid.

In Himachal Pradesh, Adani is helping the local farmers, especially apple growers, to develop the supply chain for the fruits in the region, sources said, adding that it also operates a cement business in Himachal across many assets.

In Jharkhand, the group operates the 1,600-MW Godda ultra-supercritical power plant, built at an investment of more than ₹16,000 crore. Gautam Adani reviewed projects in Jharkhand and Bihar in February as the group assessed investments exceeding ₹40,000 crore across the two states, sources said.

In Bihar, Adani announced in May that the group planned to invest ₹50,000 crore to ₹60,000 crore over the next three to four years across power, roads, gas distribution, cement and infrastructure. The plans include a ₹27,000 crore, 2,400-MW ultra-supercritical thermal power project at Pirpainti in Bhagalpur district.

Andhra Pradesh represents an even larger opportunity, although the headline investment figure needs to be attributed carefully.

Google has committed about $15 billion over five years from 2026 to 2030 to build an AI hub in Visakhapatnam. The project involves gigawatt-scale data-centre capacity, energy infrastructure and subsea connectivity, with AdaniConneX and Airtel as infrastructure partners. Google broke ground on the project in April 2026.

Adani also has a broader presence in Andhra Pradesh, including Krishnapatnam Port and renewable-energy and transmission projects.

Additionally, the group is also investing over ₹20,000 crore in developing renewable capacity (two pump storage projects) and transmission lines. It is already operating Krishnapatnam Port, which is the largest port on the east coast of India.

Over the years, Adani’s track record and ability to execute large-scale complex infra projects at speed have allowed the group to become fundamental to the development agenda of such states, where no other large organisations have paid much attention, sources added.

Sources said the pattern is clear - Adani's infrastructure ambitions are no longer confined to BJP-governed states. Congress-led governments and other opposition administrations are increasingly willing to engage the conglomerate when seeking large-scale investment, infrastructure development and employment.

For Adani, that creates a business footprint that increasingly transcends India's political fault lines. For state governments, it reflects a pragmatic search for companies capable of financing and executing projects that can reshape their economies.