India’s green office inventory to reach 700 million sq ft in 2-3 years

Highlights

The green office inventory in India is projected to reach 700 million square feet (sq ft) in the next two-three years, a report showed on Friday, adding that the proportion of leasing in green-certified buildings is expected to rise from 75 per cent currently to about 80-85 per cent in the next few years.

Ahmedabad: The green office inventory in India is projected to reach 700 million square feet (sq ft) in the next two-three years, a report showed on Friday, adding that the proportion of leasing in green-certified buildings is expected to rise from 75 per cent currently to about 80-85 per cent in the next few years.

India’s real estate sector is undergoing a major transformation, with sustainability emerging as a key cornerstone and growth driver across asset classes.

According to a CREDAI-Colliers’ report, green-certified office buildings have higher occupancy levels at 80-90 per cent, commanding rental premium of up to 25 per cent.

As of 2024, green-certified office stock in India stood at about 503 million sq ft, representing 66 per cent of the total Grade A inventory across the top six cities.

The 40 per cent rise in green office stock since the beginning of the ongoing decade reflects developers’ commitment to evolving market scenario and the resultant occupier preferences.

Notably, Bengaluru accounted for 31 per cent of India’s green-certified office stock, followed by Delhi-NCR (19 per cent) and Hyderabad (17 per cent).

In terms of green penetration which is indicated by the share of green-certified buildings in the total Grade A office stock in each city, Hyderabad led other major markets with a penetration rate of 75 per cent, closely followed by Bengaluru with 73 per cent in 2024.

"The real estate sector continues to play a defining role in driving India’s transition towards a sustainable, low-carbon future. With green-certified buildings now accounting for a significant share of new developments, it’s evident that sustainability is becoming a core pillar of real estate strategy across asset classes," CREDAI President Shekhar G. Patel said.

"We believe this is a pivotal moment to scale green adoption not just in commercial spaces but across residential, industrial, and emerging sectors like data centres," he added.

Overall, green building footprint across asset classes has nearly doubled over the last five years to reach 13 billion sq ft in 2024.

As of 2024, more than 2 million residential dwelling units, 6,500 commercial projects and 750 industrial projects were green-certified and sustainability adoption is likely to pick pace across real estate segments in the coming years.

On the supply front, over the last 5 years (2020-2024), about 80 per cent of the new Grade A office supply has been green-certified.