Omega
Seiki Pvt. Ltd., part of Anglian Omega Group of companies, announced that it
will be bringing advanced chemistry cells to India in association with New York
based companyC4V.C4V plans to become the first lithium-ion cell maker with
solid state technology in India as a part of the country’s ambitious Rs 18,000
crore PLI scheme.
The
Government introduced a Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme for the
manufacturing of large-scale electronics, in April 2020 which was in November
2020 extended to 10 other sectors including food processing, battery storage,
automobile components and specialty steel. Under this scheme, companies would
be rewarded for increasing their output with respect to a defined base year.
The PLI scheme has a simple framework — reward for increased production.
The
Memorandum of Understanding signed between the two companies will also see the
manufacturing of solid-state batteries first time in India which will be find a
usage in Omega Seiki’s range of electric vehicles. The solid-state batteries
offer high energy density without compromising on affordability.
Initially,
C4V will be supplying OSM a Bio-mineralized lithium mixed metal phosphate
battery (BM-LMP), free from toxic and hazardous components and also Nickel and
Cobalt free. It has an energy density of 200 watts/kg which is 20% more than
the lithium ferrous phosphate batteries available in the market. Besides, these
are more affordable and safer than traditional batteries. Eventually C4V plans
to produce Solid State batteries with 400Wh/kg energy density in India to cater
to EV and Renewable market. Adoption of these batteries in OSM electric
vehicles would accelerate safer and affordable EVs in the Indian market.
Life
cycle assessment certification done by New York State Government’s NYSERDA, the
batteries are one of the greenest in the world right from the extraction of raw
materials to the manufacturing and recycling. In fact, it has almost 85% less
carbon footprint than the ones in the market while having twice the life cycle
of traditional lithium-ion batteries.
Speaking
on the partnership with C4V, Uday Narang, Chairman, Omega Seiki Mobility noted,
“Omega Seiki is all set to revolutionise the electric vehicle market in India
with these new C4V batteries. Not only are they environment friendly but also
have higher energy density, allowing our vehicles to go the extra mile. We
believe in offering our consumers the best and with solid state batteries, the
latest in battery technology available globally, we hope to make another smart
move towards PM Modi’s vision of ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’.”
C4V
informed that the batteries manufacturing plant would start supplies from
second half of current year. The location for manufacturing would be announced
soon as the company is in serious discussions with several state government.
The solid-state battery technology uses solid electrolyte, offering more power
density and life. This is latest in the Li-Ion battery technology and several
OEMs like Toyota announced recently they would be launching this in their cars
around 2025. This makes India taking lead in introducing solid state batteries
in EV space ahead of global giants like Toyota. Omega plans to start testing
the solid-state batteries in their vehicles soon and would be the first company
in India fitted with these batteries.