Hyderabad: Amara Raja Batteries Limited (ARBL), one of India’s leading industrial and automotive battery majors on Saturday held a grand foundation ceremony for Telangana’s first gigafactory in Mahbubnagar district.
The event was attended by state MA&UD minister KT Rama Rao, Dr. Ramachandra N Galla – Founder, Amara Raja Group, and Mr. Jayadev Galla – Chairman & Managing Director, of ARBL, in the presence of other dignitaries from the government and industry.
Telangana government had recently entered into an MOU with Amara Raja Advanced Cell Technologies Pvt. Ltd. (ARACT) a wholly owned subsidiary of ARBL, which has been working on Li-ion cell chemistries specifically suited for Indian subcontinent conditions and already supplies lithium battery packs and chargers to some 2 and 3-Wheeler OEMs.
The ceremony officially marked the beginning of the ‘Amara Raja Giga Corridor’ that aims to produce Lithium Cells and battery packs with an ultimate capacity of up to 16GWh and up to 5 GWh respectively. The facility also aims to create direct employment for about 4,500 people and a similar number of indirect jobs that will make significant contributions to the socio-economic development of the region, a press note informed.
The initial facilities would also include a first-of-its-kind advanced energy research and innovation center, dubbed the Amara Raja E +Ve Energy Labs. This facility will be equipped with advanced laboratories and testing infrastructure for material research, prototyping, product life cycle analysis, and Proof of Concept demonstration. This will cater to the development needs of the Amara Raja as well as provide a range of facilities open to other players in the energy and mobility ecosystem.
On the occasion, Dr. Ramachandra N Galla, Founder, of Amara Raja Group said “Amara Raja’s core purpose has always been to build institutions that provide better opportunities to more and more people and this beginning today will transform this region in the years to come.”
“We expect this foray to be a significant needle-mover in India’s energy transition. We have always been at the forefront of introducing new technologies and take immense pride in being able to build out world-class manufacturing units.” Added Vikramadithya Gourineni, Executive Director, ARBL.
Jayadev Galla, Chairman & Managing Director, of ARBL, expressed his enthusiasm at the ground-breaking ceremony (Bhoomi Pooja) of the company’s and state’s first Lithium Cell and Battery Pack Manufacturing unit.
“The Bhoomi pooja marks a significant milestone in our journey and our strategic step is not just limited to setting up the Giga Corridor but to providing non-migratory jobs to the local youth. We are grateful to the Telangana government for its tremendous support in this endeavor.”
Congratulating the company on the groundbreaking ceremony, K T Rama Rao said, “Electric mobility remains a focus area for the Telangana government and we are committed to developing the right infrastructure and ecosystem for the promotion and adoption of EVs. Telangana has been a frontrunner in adopting sustainability, and it is a proud moment for the state to celebrate the ground-breaking ceremony of Amara Raja Batteries’ first Lithium Cell and Battery Pack Manufacturing facility.”
