In a bid to achieve self-reliance and reduce global dependence on Cathode materials, India is looking into Cathode Active Material (CAM) production through public-private partnership (PPP).

The ARCI (International Advanced Research Centre for Powder Metallurgy and New Materials), which works under the Union Ministry of Science and Technology, in collaboration with Altmin has come out with the maiden product – Lithium Ferrous Phosphate (LFP), the key component of CAMs. This is product is used in the manufacturing of advanced Lithium-ion cells that would help the electric vehicles industry and other industrial applications.

The company was formed to support the Government of India’s Advanced Chemistry Cell - PLI scheme, targetted to localise the manufacturing of Li-ion cells and batteries in India and will continue to operate as a public-private partnership with ARCI.

“Located within ARCI campus at Balapur here, the 5,000 sq facility will start producing 100 kgs of CAM a day,” a statement said here on Thursday.

Quoting surveys, it said India’s requirement for LFP — by 2025 is pegged at 25 gigawatts (GW) and by 2030 it is projected to cross the 150-GW mark. The global demand is estimated to be over 9 terawatts by 2030.

“Altmin has already secured interest from major battery players for product deployment in India and globally,” it said. The company has partnered up with YLB of Bolivia for a consistent and secure supply of battery grade lithium carbonate necessary for the production.

“After years of R&D, we have come up with a technology that is fool-proof, economical and sustainable. We are very confident that we will be India’s leader in cathode materials and Tier-1 supplier to global original equipment manufacturers, while creating a secure supply chain in India and supporting the local clean energy transition,” Mourya Sunkavalli, Founder and Managing Director of Altmin, said.

He said Altmin was trying to scale up and will become a 3 GW capacity company by 2025 and start production at strategic locations in other parts of the country,” he said.