“If no one is making cells in India anymore, a more liberal policy to stimulate the industry makes sense,” Galla said. “Once we build up the manufacturing capacity and until we are competitive at the global level, we need some protection. And I think the government is aware of that.”
When asked specifically whether he was proposing anti-dumping duties on Chinese battery imports, Galla said: “Yes, absolutely. The time for that is not now, but only when we have the necessary capacity in the country – in about two years.”
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The chairman of the Amara Raja Group spoke to CNBC-TV18 a day before the inauguration of the battery cell gigafactory near Hyderabad. Amara Raja Energy and Mobility Ltd recently announced a possible investment of ₹9,500 crore to open a gigafactory to produce battery packs and lithium-ion cells.
“Our first phase will have a battery pack factory with a capacity of 5 GWH,” Galla said. “The first phase of our cell manufacturing will start between April and June 2025 and will reach its final capacity of 16 GWH by the end of FY 2027.” Apart from Amara Raja’s progress in battery cell production, Galla added that the battery cell supply chain will need policy interventions to become less dependent on imports.
“It’s good to give us incentives and help, but it’s necessary to actually get into the supply chains and secure them, as the Chinese government has done – or give us incentives to do so,” he said. “China doesn’t own 80 percent of the minerals, but it processes them. If we want the private sector to invest in mining or refining, we need to provide incentives.”
The head of Amara Raja dismissed the suggestion that India’s cell production could potentially face an oversupply similar to China’s current production, as domestic supply still does not meet existing demand: “Our planned investments will not meet the planned demand, so there is room for more.”
Galla also expressed doubts about the intention of several companies to enter the battery ecosystem, pointing out that only a handful of companies are investing in cell manufacturing rather than battery pack production. “A cell requires a huge investment because you are getting into electrochemistry,” he said. “You have to watch how many companies are investing.”
Galla noted the influx of companies seeking to capitalize on the PLI program for lithium-ion batteries and battery packs, but was also cynical about their progress: “If you look at who is making progress and investing not only in packs but also in cells, it’s a very small number. We are part of that small group; the others don’t have the ability, the knowledge or the motivation.”
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