Starlit Power Systems Ltd JV to make next gen automobile batteries

Starlit Power Systems Ltd has signed a Joint Venture with China's second largest motorcycle and UPS battery manufacturing company Guangdong Dynavolt Technologies wherein, Guangdong Dynavolt will acquire 24pc of equity in Starlit Power Systems Ltd by an infusion of RMB 5 million (Rs 5.17 crore approx.). Guangdong Dynavolt Ltd, a technology giant with over dozen subsidiaries in China has a   market capitalisation of $ 1470 million (Rs 8800 crore) and is listed in the Shenzhen Stock Exchange.

Post the Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to China and the emphasis on 'Make in India', the Joint Venture marks the first Chinese investment in the secondary power sector in an Indian manufacturing company.

 The Joint Venture and the technology transfer will allow the next- Gen batteries for motorcycles, e-bikes, Telecoms and UPS applications to be manufactured in India. It also opens doors for brining in packaged off-grid solar solutions to the Indian market.

Starlit Power Systems Ltd, a part of Starlit Group, has a state-of-the-art battery manufacturing plant at Sohna, near Delhi. The company is the producer of the iconic 'Konstant' brand of batteries for automobiles, inverter, solar and E-Rickshaw applications. It also does third Party labelling for many known brands in the country. Unlike most battery manufacturers that rely on outsourcing most raw materials, Starlit has its own in-house capability for refining and customising alloys and oxides. This makes the company operation an integrated one and gives it a control over raw material and its quality parameters which are vital in this electro-chemical industry.

GuangDong Dynavolt Technologies Ltd is the second largest motorcycle battery manufacturer in China and has significant presence in the VRLA batteries for UPS, Telcom and E-Bike applications. It has in its client list iconic brands like Harley Davidson and BMW bikes.  In fact, as a tribute to its quality, over 75pc of Dynavolt's turnover comes from the USA, Europe, Australia and Japan where leading brands use the batteries made by Dynavolt. Besides manufacturing batteries, Dynavolt also has interests in solar panel manufacturing, solar based power packs and inverters, e-bikes and cars.  From its dominant position in the motor cycle battery industry, the Company is also the sponsor of the German Racing Team, Dynavolt Intact GP in the World Grand Prix MOTO GP. The present Investment is only the phase-I and together with Dynavolt is keen to explore not only the growing battery market but also offer packaged battery and solar paneled solutions customised to meet the growing demand for Energy in a clean and green manner in a growing economy like India.

"This JV is a pioneering initiative as it is the first time that in secondary power industry and typically in battery industry two companies pooling in their technical know-how to bring out the best expertise from both the countries. We expect that such liaison in future will create more opportunities both for India and for other countries.Going forward, it opens doors for bigger projects and greater co-operation,” stated Sachin Shridhar, Founder & Chairman, Starlit Group.

Adding further he said “On knowledge sharing front, it will allow both country’s engineers to get training and exchange expertise with each other. Chinese engineers will also be working with Indian operators on the processes adopted by large scale Chinese conglomerates"

“With good manufacturing facility at Starlit and access to technologies and markets with Dynavolt, we can produce the VRLA batteries which are in huge demand both in India and overseas", said  Chen Le Wu, the Chairman of the Company Dynavolt.

Shey Hong Ping, GM operations, Dynavolt India “We have been working with Starlit for some time now and have a good relation with the team at Starlit. At production level, it allows us to introduce product ranges in VRLA, gel and nano-gel batteries which are the products of the future and are widely used in the overseas markets."

The Indian e-vehicle market - e-cycles, rickshaws, carts etc – is poised for a big leap and in the growing cities, substitution of diesel by cleaner technologies makes both economic and environmental sense. In effect, in these applications the batteries will replace diesel and thus, the technologies need to be both robust and lasting. With China having over 25 crore electric vehicles, India too is now set for this major shift and leap.

Source: Starlit Power Systems Ltd