India Plans To Invite Bids For $960 Million EV Battery Production Scheme: Report

The Central government is reportedly planning to invite bids for Rs 8,000 crore ($960 million) incentive scheme for production of electric vehicle batteries.

Under this scheme, selected participants will be required to set up advanced chemistry battery facilities with a total output of 20 gigawatt-hours, Bloomberg reported citing sources.

The bidding process for this project is reportedly scheduled to commence next month.

Firms like South Korea's LG Energy Solution Ltd, alongside prominent Indian companies such as Mahindra & Mahindra Amara Raja Energy & Mobility, Exide Industries, and Larsen & Toubro, showed interest during a consultation meeting with government officials.

The government will give incentives to companies over a period of five years on the sale of batteries manufactured locally.

Last year, prominent business entities such as Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries, Ola Electric Mobility, and Rajesh Exports were selected to produce 30 gigawatt-hours of battery capacity, thus qualifying for benefits under the first of the governmental scheme.

A joint report by research institution RMI India and the government's think tank Niti Aayog has predicted that battery demand could escalate to 260 gigawatt-hours by 2030, driven by the expanding sectors of electric vehicles, large-scale energy storage, and various consumer electronic devices.