Hyderabad: Amara Raja Batteries Limited (ARBL), one of the leading industrial and automotive battery majors, on Friday announced to set up state-of-the-art research and manufacturing facilities for lithium-ion battery making in the state with an investment of Rs 9,500 crore.
Chittoor-Headquartered (Andhra Pradesh) industrial and automotive battery manufacturer said it has signed a pact with the Telangana government to set up a lithium cell Gigafactory with ultimate capacity up to 16 Gwh and a Battery Pack Assembly unit to 5 GWh at Mahabubnagar district in Telangana.
Over the next 10 years, the company intends to invest over Rs 9500 crore, after necessary approvals.
The MoU was signed by Telangana Principal Secretary Industries & Commerce Department Jayesh Ranjan and ARBL Executive Director Vikramadithya Gourineni in the presence of IT and Industry Minister K T Rama Rao and ARBL Chairman & Managing Director Jayadev Galla.
The initial facilities would include an energy research and innovation center in Hyderabad, dubbed the Amara Raja E-hub. This facility will be equipped with advanced laboratories and testing infrastructure for material research, prototyping, product life cycle analysis and proof of concept demonstration, the company said.
“This will cater to the development needs of the Amara Raja as well as to provide a range of facilities open to other players in the energy and mobility ecosystem,” in line with the ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’ vision of the Government of India.
In addition, as part of its journey towards Giga scale manufacturing of advanced cell technology products, Amara Raja would be establishing commercial scale pilot plant and the first giga scale cell production facility.
In last month, the Company had announced the incorporation of a subsidiary named Amara Raja Advanced Cell Technologies Private Limited.
Amara Raja has been working on Li-ion cell chemistries specifically suited for Indian subcontinent conditions, and already supplies lithium battery packs and chargers to some 2 and 3-Wheeler OEMs.
On the occasion, Jayadev Galla, said, “This strategic partnership with the Government of Telangana is a giant leap for Amara Raja and will bring in the impetus for innovations in sustainable technologies for the whole region, in addition to generating employment opportunities.
We have had a long association with the state and are excited to finally have the opportunity to establish an industrial base here.”
Vikramadithya Gourineni, Executive Director, New Energy Business, ARBPL said “This latest step is in line with the ‘Energy & Mobility’ roadmap that we laid out last year.
Our ambition is to develop a robust Indian ecosystem with R&D, incubation, testing, and manufacturing – a Giga Corridor for emerging technologies in Energy and Mobility.”
Congratulating the company on the announcements, the Minister said, “it is a proud moment for the state to welcome the country’s largest ever investment in the lithium-ion cell manufacturing sector.
Our aim is to become the most electrified state in India, and having a Gigafactory in Telangana further strengthens our aspiration to become an EV manufacturing hub and spearhead the EV revolution in India,” KTR said.
