A shortage of lithium and the risks associated with its sourcing are the main reasons for India not having its own EV battery-manufacturing sector yet, asserted Chairman of Marutiz Suzuki India, RC Bhargava, on Tuesday.
Speaking on the sidelines of the inauguration of Maruti Suzuki India’s first electric car manufacturing unit in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, Bhargava said he hoped Indian scientists would be able to crack the code for technology that can stop the electric vehicle (EV) industry’s reliance on external supplies.
“We don’t make EV batteries yet...Nobody is making battery cells in India. One of the problems of EVs today is that people are packaging the cells into batteries, but actual production of cell is not taking place (in India),” he said.
One step ahead in this regard was taken with the commencement of the lithium-ion battery cell-making unit for strong hybrid electric vehicles in Gujarat, which would also supply to Maruti Suzuki’s e-Vitaara electric car – the first batch of e-Vitaara, in fact, is now ready to be exported to some European countries.
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However, Bhargava, chairman of the country’s largest automobile manufacturer in India, acknowledges that the proposition of setting up production of battery cells is very capital-intensive.
“It could cost about ₹20,000 crore to put up a battery plant. But, the problem is the raw material, which is lithium. If I put up a plant, and the raw material is not available to me, as an investor, what is my risk... especially if the raw material is controlled by one supplier?" he asks.
This high risk, he says, is one of the reasons investors back away from setting up such units.
"That is possibly one of the factors which is making people stay away from making investments in battery manufacturing in India."
To protect themselves from arbitrary decisions of supplying raw materials by countries like China, which holds majority raw earth magnet production and processing units in the world, Bhargava suggests partnering with Chinese companies.
“Either you partner with a Chinese company, give them majority and let them set up the facility in return for an assurance that you get the supply of the raw material. But, so far no one has done it yet,” he said.
Maruti Suzuki's subsidiary, TDS Lithium-Ion Battery Gujarat Pvt Ltd (TDSG) – the first company in India to achieve electrode-level localisation of lithium-ion battery cells – had started production of batteries for mild hybrid vehicles in 2021. It has since produced battery packs for over 10 lakh vehicles with an investment of ₹4,267 crore.
Manufacturing lithium-ion batteries, cells, and electrodes for its strong hybrid electric vehicle facility, it has planned an expansion of 12 million cells per annum.
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