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Battery Technologies in India – Challenges & Way Forward

Battery Technologies in India – Challenges & Way Forward

by Rahul Raj, Co-founder, Inverted Energy

India has set a target of having 30% EV penetration by 2030. India is also tendering many renewable energy plus storage projects where the stationary storage component will be catered to by batteries. Hence, batteries require large scale production and efficient battery technologies to cater to this need.

Taking a look at the evolution of battery technologies, what began with lead-acid batteries, evolved into nickel metal hydride, nickel-cadmium and finally lithium-ion. The most dominant battery technology today is the lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries. All the other breakthroughs in battery innovation are not scalable commercially as of now. Lithium-ion battery manufacturing consists of three parts – first is cell to battery-pack manufacturing involving a value add of 30% to 40%; second is cell manufacturing with a value add of 25% to 30%; and the third involves battery-chemicals with a value of 35% to 40% of the total cost of the battery pack.

Table 1: Characteristics of existing & emerging Lithium battery technologies
 

Existing LIB Technology Cell Voltage(V) Specific Energy (Wh/kg) Cycle Life (cycles) Applications
LMO 3.7 l 00-150 300- 700 EV
LFP 3.2 90-1 20 2000 RE & EV
NCA 3.6 200-250 l 000-1500 RE & EV
NMC 3.7 140-200 1000-2000 RE & EV
LMO/LTO 2.5 50-80 6000 EV, U PS
NMC/LTO 2.3 50-80 27000 Hybrid EV
LFP/LTO 1.8 50-80 20000 Hybrid EV

LMO - Lithium-ion Manganese Oxide, LFP - Lithium Iron Phosphate, NCA- Lithium Nickel Cobalt Aluminium oxide, NMC – Lithium Nickel Manganese Cobalt Oxide, LTO- Lithium Titanium oxide

Table 2: Characteristics of emerging Lithium Battery Technologies

Emerging Technology Battery Characteristics Cell Voltage(V) Specific Energy(wh/kg) Cycle Life(cycles)
Lithium Sulphur

Anode: Li-metal protected by lithium nitrate   
Cathode: Sulphur-graphene composite    Electrolyte: Ionic liquid based 

4 500 1500
Solid State Li-ion battery Anode: Lithium metal
Cathode: NMC
Electrolyte: Solid Polymer
3-4.3 500 23,000
Li Metal Anode: Li metal with Li coating on asphalt-graphene substrate
Cathode: Sulphurized carbon          Electrolyte: Concentrated electrolyte
1.7-1.8 900 30-40
Li Air Anode: Lithium metal
Cathode: Pure oxygen infused into a porous caron
Electrolyte: Organic electrolyte same as conventional LIB
~2.4 150-6000 700
Flexible thin-film Lithium Anode: Silicon
Cathode: Thin layer of Lithium oxides
eg. LFP, LMO, LCO               Electrolyte:Polymer
~4.8-5 300 40,000

Applications of Batteries

Homes – solar powered
Electric Vehicles
Mobile Phones
Storage for other renewable energy technologies like Wind Power
 

Challenges

  • Technology Cost is a challenge. Batteries are a bit expensive, however, the costs are eventually coming down also, the industry requires batteries of high performance at elevated temperatures, high capacity with more range and life cycle. Interestingly, automobile OEMs are taking a more proactive approach towards the R&D of solid-state batteries.
  • India bought batteries worth USD 1.2 billion in 2019-20 making this sector heavily dependent on imports. 65% of lithium reserves are in Bolivia and Chile, and most of the mines in these countries are owned by China. China has a near monopoly on lithium-ion batteries, which accounts for 70% of the cost of two wheelers and 50% of cars. India has so far not surveyed if it has sufficient reserves of lithium. Last year India discovered around 14,000 tonnes of lithium, but this is far less compared to other countries.
  • Weather conditions and temperature constraints is one of the important aspects that manufacturers must keep in mind.The temperature in India goes as high as 48 to 50 degree celsius, but  the batteries that are available today is suitable for upto 40 degree celcius.As the temperature goes up, there is a possibility of explosion or degradation of the battery capacity. EV batteries are coming up with cooling systems, making them more expensive.
  • Another challenge is  lack of charging infrastructure. Not having enough charging access points is the most common reason for consumers not buying an EV.  With EV prices declining and ranges expanding, charging is the top barrier.  Yet still there are fewer number of charging stations and thus infrastructure needs to be maintained parallelly with EVs penetration by 2030.
  • As the number of batteries start multiplying, it will lead to a significant problem of battery waste disposal and recycling post completion of battery life. This can have serious environmental implications.
  • Lack of efficient R&D infrastructure. The challenge is that there are no deadlines. For instance, other regions and facilities work on heavy deadlines. When they are given R&D work by governments, they set a target, along with the industry collaborations. In India, this kind of attitude is what we are missing and thus there is a need to eliminate these delays.

Way Forward

  • The key sectors that will drive the demand for batteries is the growth of electric vehicles (EVs) and renewable electricity storage. EVs are poised to reduce India’s oil import bill and contribute to cleaner air. India lacks the capacity to manufacture cells commercially and, hence, to cut the capital expenditure on imports, the Indian government has made plans to indigenize battery manufacturing.
  • Research shows that the cost of Li-ion battery packs fell by 85 percent in the last decade and will further fall by 35 percent by 2024 to below USD 100 per kWh. A recent report states that the Li-ion battery manufacturing capacity will grow fourfold to 1.3 TWh in 2030 compared to 2019. The Asia Pacific dominates this capacity by accounting for an 80 percent share and, within this region.
  • Bridging the rift between industry and laboratories can aid faster transitioning towards commercial manufacturing of batteries. The government can offer venture funding or high-risk funding to research institutions focusing on battery technology which shall enable them to showcase the commercialization potential of their innovations.
  • A report by NITI Aayog has stated that if India has to meet its EV targets through 100 percent domestic manufacturing of batteries, it would require at least 3500 GWh of battery storage at a wholesale cost of USD 300 billion, which will be less than half the cost of oil imports thus avoided. The India Energy Storage Alliance (IESA) has estimated a 300 GWh demand till 2025 taking into consideration the EV and energy storage system opportunities.
  • In lieu of the growing battery sector, the Indian government launched the ‘National Mission on Transformative Mobility and Battery Storage’ last year to promote phased manufacturing programmes for battery and EV components. The initiative will support setting up of large-scale export competitive integrated battery manufacturing plants in India. NITI Aayog has proposed setting up gigafactories aggregating a capacity of 50 GWh over the next ten years at a projected cost of USD 5 billion.
  • A report has predicted that by 2030, the battery recycling industry in India can be a million dollar opportunity. To reduce imports and attain sustainable battery manufacturing, it would be important to invest in battery recycling too. The amount of recycled lithium is expected to satisfy 9 % of the global demand for lithium in various applications. More than 66 percent of the spent EV batteries are expected to be recycled in China, used to cater to the country’s fast-growing battery material industry.
  • Along with India’s vision of making India 100% electric energy dependent by 2030, a Delhi based startup called Inverted Energy, is contributing to the vision by making Lithium-ion products easily available in India for E-mobility & Energy Storage. They recently announced the inauguration of their lithium-ion manufacturing plant in Delhi.
  • As per reports, they have made a major contribution of 75000 batteries in the Indian government's Saubhagya Scheme, also being an environmentally conscious brand they are ensuring proper recycling with their battery Buy-back scheme. Similarly, there are many more companies building India’s future together.

Conclusion

The Covid-19 pandemic has gained urgency since substantial commodities are imported from China, a country with whom India’s geopolitical tensions are making trade increasingly difficult. With mega targets to ramp up the renewable energy mix, especially solar, to its power generation capacity, and an increased focus on electric vehicles (EVs), India has to make concerted efforts to incentivise the domestic manufacturing of EV components, renewable energy equipment and batteries.

 

 

 




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