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The board of Amara Raja Batteries Ltd. (ARBL) has decided to rejig the company board and has announced ‘Energy and Mobility’ as the strategic focus for the company going forward.
It has announced expansion of the Lead Acid Batteries business and the establishment of a New Energy SBU encompassing Lithium cell and battery pack, EV chargers, Energy Storage Systems, Advanced Home Energy Solutions and related products and services.
Vice-Chairman Jayadev Galla said: “After a careful review of the global business opportunities, the ARBL Board has decided to future-proof our business by repositioning ARBL as an Energy and Mobility player. The board believes that ARBL has to invest in a portfolio of businesses to maintain its technological and business leadership. The company is now poised to build on these strengths and create multiple new growth engines in the New Energy space.”
The company believes that the Lead Acid Batteries business will continue to grow in India owing to the buoyant demand from automotive, industrial, telecom and new emerging segments such as data centres.
ARBL will further invest in advanced process technologies to maintain its technological edge as well as recycling to enhance critical raw material security and expand its commitment to environmental responsibility. The company also hopes to pursue inorganic opportunities available in the market to bolster its leadership position.
The Rs 18,000-crore PLI scheme announced recently by Government provides a significant impetus for building a domestic supply chain for lithium and other advanced cell chemistries to serve the fast-growing EV and renewable energy sectors. ARBL plans to invest in a bouquet of products and services to accelerate its transformation to an Energy and Mobility solutions provider.
Leadership change
The board of ARBL has also approved a series of leadership and organisational changes to drive the execution of this new strategy.
Founder Chairman Dr. Ramachandra Galla, who steered the company for 36 years, will step down as Chairman, and Jayadev Galla will assume the role of Chairman of the board after the AGM.
The board accepted the resignation of Dr. Ramadevi Gourineni as Non-Executive Director, and has decided to induct Harshavardhana Gourineni and Vikramaditya Gourineni as Executive Directors. This is part of the promoter family’s succession plan of 2013, when both Harsha and Vikram were identified as gen-next leaders.
Given the strategic importance and orbit-shifting potential of the New Energy business, the company has decided that. S. Vijayanand will take charge as President – New Energy.
The board has also inducted Annush Ramasamy as Independent Director of ARBL. He has been with Sri KumaraGuru Mill Ltd (SKG) as President and Managing Director. He is an active member of the Entrepreneurs Organization, Young Indians, TiE and The Chennai Angels.
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