New Indigenous Technology For Production Of Cathode Material For Li-Ion Batteries To Make EVs Cheaper In India

In a significant development, a new indigenous technology developed by Indian scientists for the production of cathode material for Lithium-ion batteries may soon make such batteries for electric vehicles cheaper, which in turn will also reduce the cost of the EVs.

The cost of cathode materials contributes significantly towards the overall cost of Li-ion batteries, and India is heavily dependent on the import of these materials.

Telangana-based International Advanced Research Centre for Powder Metallurgy and New Materials (ARCI) has developed indigenous technology for the production of Lithium Iron Phosphate (LFP) cathode material for Li-ion batteries at its Centre for Nanomaterials.

ARCI on Thursday (12 August) signed an agreement for Know-How Transfer of the technology to Hyderabad-based Allox Minerals, the Ministry of Science and Technology said in a statement on Friday (13 August).

Dr Tata Narasinga Rao, Director (Additional Charge), ARCI stated that the cost of cathode materials contributes significantly towards the overall cost of Li-ion batteries, and as India is heavily dependent on import of these materials, it became essential to indigenously develop a technology for the manufacture of electrode materials and support industrial organisations in the Li-ion battery technology.

Rajiv Reddy, Director, Allox Minerals, said that his company is proud to be associated with ARCI and is looking forward to successfully commercialising LFP technology.

According to the ministry, the technology, which is in line with the ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan’ or ‘Self-Reliant India Mission’, was developed under the Technical Research Centre (TRC) on Alternative Energy Materials and Systems and the know-how for the technology is available for transfer on a non-exclusive basis.