Development Of Domestic Battery Manufacturing Ecosystem To Reduce Dependence On Imports

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF HEAVY INDUSTRIES RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2313 ANSWERED ON 19.12.2025 DEVELOPMENT OF DOMESTIC BATTERY MANUFACTURING ECOSYSTEM TO REDUCE DEPENDENCE ON IMPORTS 2313. DR. LAXMIKANT BAJPAYEE: Will the Minister of Heavy Industries be pleased to state: (a) whether one of the major challenges for adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) in the country includes supply chain and manufacturing dependence as India relies heavily on imports for key battery components like lithium and cobalt; (b) if so, the measures taken by Government to improve this situation in view of lack of a robust domestic battery manufacturing ecosystem which makes supply chain vulnerable and affects overall cost and availability of EVs; and (c) the status and outcome of research being done on different type of batteries including Lithium, Aluminium and Sodium Cell technologies etc? ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR HEAVY INDUSTRIES (SHRI BHUPATHIRAJU SRINIVASA VARMA) (a) & (b): The Ministry of Heavy Industries is administering the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme namely “National Programme on Advanced Chemistry Cell (ACC) Battery Storage,” approved in May 2021 with a total outlay of ₹18,100 crore to establish 50 GWh of domestic Advanced Chemistry Cell manufacturing capacity. Further, as per the information received from M/o Mines, M/o Mines has taken several steps to secure critical mineral supply chains, including battery minerals like lithium, nickel, cobalt etc. which inter-alia include: i.) The Union Cabinet approved the establishment of National Critical Minerals Mission (NCMM) on 29th January, 2025, with a financial outlay of ₹16,300 crore from FY 2024– 25 to 2030–31. The NCMM aims to secure India's critical mineral supply chain and to strengthen all stages of the value chain, including mineral exploration, mining, beneficiation, processing, and recovery from end-of-life products. M/o Mines has recognized 9 institutes – 4 IITs, 1 IISc and 4 R&D Labs – as Centres of Excellence (CoE) under NCMM. ii.) Geological Survey of India (GSI) intensified exploration of critical and strategic minerals. GSI took up 195 critical mineral exploration projects in 2024–25, and 230 projects in 2025–26 across the country. Additionally, National Mineral Exploration and Development Trust (NMEDT) has sanctioned 62 projects for exploration of critical minerals during 2024-25 and 36 projects during 2025-26. iii.) M/o Mines has successfully auctioned 34 blocks of critical minerals.-2- iv.) M/o Mines has successfully auctioned 7 blocks of Exploration License, out of which, three are of critical minerals. v.) The Union Cabinet approved a ₹1,500 crore Incentive Scheme to develop recycling capacity for the separation and production of critical minerals from secondary sources. The Scheme Guidelines have been issued by the M/o Mines on 02.10.2025. vi.) Guidelines for funding Pilot Projects for Recovery of Critical Minerals from overburden/ tailings/fly ash/ Red mud etc. have been issued on 14.11.2025. vii.) Khanij Bidesh India Limited (KABIL), a Joint Venture Company under the aegis of the Ministry of Mines, has acquired five lithium brine blocks in the Catamarca province of Argentina for exploration and development. (c): The PLI ACC scheme is technologically agnostic, which ensures that superior technologies receive higher incentives. The scheme is designed to attract substantial investments, promote research and development, and reduce dependency on imports for ACCs. Further, under the scheme, expenditures incurred by beneficiary firms on Research and Development (R&D) are permitted to meet investment criteria, allowing them to integrate the latest technology in the implementation of their projects. As per the information received from M/o Mines, M/o Mines provides financial support under the R&D component and S&T-PRISM (Promotion of Research & Innovation in Startups and MSMEs) component of the Science and Technology Programme for undertaking R&D projects in mining, mineral processing, metallurgical technologies, mineral beneficiation techniques, and recycling sector. The funding is extended to academic institutions, universities, R&D institutions recognized by the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research, start-ups and MSMEs. Since 2018-19, under the R&D component, 11 projects amounting to ₹5.76 crore have been sanctioned related to batteries including Lithium, Aluminium and Sodium Cell technologies etc. Under the S&T-PRISM component (since its inception in Nov., 2023), 4 projects with a total funding of ₹9.30 crore have been sanctioned, for start-ups and MSMEs related to batteries including Lithium, Aluminium and Sodium Cell technologies etc. As per the information received from M/o New and Renewable Energy (MNRE), MNRE is implementing a “Renewable Energy Research and Technology Development Programme (RE-RTD)” through various research institutions and industry to develop indigenous technologies and manufacturing for widespread applications of new and renewable energy including energy storage technologies in efficient and cost-effective manner in the country. Under the RE-RTD programme, MNRE provides up to 100% financial support to Government/Non-Profit research organizations and upto 70% to Industry, Start-Ups, Private Institutes, Entrepreneurs, and Manufacturing units. The continuous R&D efforts in the area of renewable energy have resulted in enhancement of overall efficiency, cost reduction, and better reliability of renewable energy systems/ projects/ storage technologies being deployed in the country. As per the information received from D/o Science and Technology, Anusandhan National Research Foundation (ANRF) has sanctioned 236 projects under different type of batteries including Lithium, Aluminium and Sodium Cell Technologies etc. *****