The gigafactory for battery manufacturing, designed with an annual capacity of 30 GW, will start by assembling battery systems and packs. It plans to later broaden its operations to include cell manufacturing and chemical production.
Reliance Industries Ltd, the oil-to-telecoms conglomerate, anticipates commencing production at its forthcoming battery Gigafactory in the latter half of the next year, as stated by the company’s Chairman, Mukesh Ambani. This facility, poised to feature an annual production capacity of 30 GWh, will start by assembling battery systems and packs and is slated to expand into cell manufacturing and chemical production in future phases.
During the company’s annual general meeting, Ambani revealed that construction had already begun on an integrated advanced chemistry-based battery manufacturing facility with a capacity of 30 GWh per year located at Jamnagar. He projected that production would kick off by the second half of the following year.
The plant is part of the expansive Dhirubhai Ambani Green Energy Giga Complex, which covers 5,000 acres in Jamnagar, Gujarat. The complex houses a pilot line, operated by Reliance subsidiary Lithium Werks, with a capacity of 50 MWh per year for producing lithium-ion battery cells, which is poised for scaling to commercial production levels.
Ambani described the company’s gradual plan for its battery production strategy. He explained that they would start by assembling Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) for utility-scale applications, along with battery pack solutions for a range of markets such as residential, commercial, industrial, telecom, and mobility sectors. Over the following quarters, the company aims to expand its capabilities to include cell manufacturing and eventually move towards the production of battery chemicals.
Reliance Industries has been a beneficiary of the government’s production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme for advanced chemistry cell battery manufacturing, securing an allocation of 5 GWh capacity under this initiative. The company has further ambitions, having placed bids for an additional 10 GWh capacity under the same scheme.
The company is not alone in its endeavours; other firms such as Ola Electric, Amara Raja, Exide Industries, and GODI India are also in the process of establishing Gigafactories across India. By the end of this decade, India’s battery manufacturing capacity is expected to hit 150 GWh, with advanced chemistry cell manufacturing still in the early stages of development in the country.
Ambani also highlighted the modular design of the Gigafactory, which allows for rapid expansion of capacity in multiples of 30 GW, tailored to meet both domestic and international demand across a variety of applications from stationary to mobility.
Reliance Industries plans to capitalize on the electrochemical and product innovation expertise of its subsidiaries, Lithium Wreks and Faradion, to propel the comprehensive development of the battery Gigafactory. The company boasts a dedicated team of nearly 150 technologists focused on delivering next-generation battery and storage solutions, prioritising safety, stability, and reduced lifecycle costs.
Additionally, the company is advancing the commercialization of its sodium-ion battery technology, with plans to ramp up to megawatt-level production of sodium-ion cells by next year.
