Amara Raja Batteries Limited (ARBL) held a grand groundbreaking ceremony for Telangana’s first gigafactory in Mahbubnagar district on Saturday.
The event was attended by Industries Minister KT Rama Rao, Dr Ramachandra N Galla, Founder, Amara Raja Group and Jayadev Galla, the Chairman and Managing Director of ARBL.
The Telangana government had recently entered into a 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. They already supply lithium battery packs and chargers to some two and 3-wheeler OEMs.
The ground-breaking ceremony officially marked the beginning of ‘Amara Raja Giga Corridor’ which aims to produce Lithium Cell and battery packs with an ultimate capacity of up to 16 GWh 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.
The initial facilities would also include a first-of-its-kind advanced energy research and innovation centre, 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 Amara Raja as well as provide a range of facilities open to other players in the energy and mobility fields.
Congratulating the company, KT Rama Rao said, “Electric mobility remains a focus area for the Telangana government and we are committed to developing the right infrastructure for the promotion 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.”
On the occasion, Dr. Ramachandra N Galla, Founder, Amara Raja Group said “Amara Raja’s core purpose has always been to build institutions that provide better opportunities to 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, the Executive Director of ARBL.
Jayadev Galla, Chairman & Managing Director, 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.
