Aditya Birla Group’s Hindalco To Build INR 800 Cr EV Battery Foil Plant In Odisha

Aditya Birla Group’s metals flagship company Hindalco Industries has announced an investment of INR 800 Cr to set up a battery foil manufacturing facility in Odisha’s Sambalpur district.

Hindalco’s investment commitment comes on the back of its plan to tap the growing market for electric vehicles and energy storage systems in India. The new plant will manufacture fine-quality aluminium foil used in rechargeable batteries, the company said in a statement on Tuesday (December 12).

The Odisha unit will be located alongside a 25 MW solar power plant and can access additional solar energy from a 400 KV National Grid connection. Scheduled for commissioning in July 2025, the unit will supplement Hindalco’s existing facility at Mouda in Maharashtra.

The manufacturing unit will produce 25000 tonnes of fine quality aluminium foil which forms the backbone of lithium-ion and Sodium-ion cells, which are used in battery manufacturing of electric vehicles, the statement said.

“We are seeing fast traction in battery materials demand, driven by an impressive outlook for the electric vehicle and grid storage sectors. Raw material localisation is critical in such strategic sectors,” said Satish Pai, managing director, Hindalco Industries.

Hindalco has already achieved the technology breakthrough of manufacturing fine-quality battery foils at its Mouda unit in Maharashtra. The plant is currently in the process of qualifying with lithium-ion cell manufacturers in India, Europe and the United States.

The new unit in Odisha will further augment the capability to supply material to Gigafactories across the world, the statement added.

Besides, Hindalco is also working closely with original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) to co-develop and make critical components like battery enclosures, motor housings, busbars, structural and safety components, and lightweight load bodies, many of which are being designed and to be developed for the first time in India.

Earlier in August 2022,  Hindalco entered into a commercial arrangement with Greenko Energies Pvt Ltd to set up a renewable energy project for supply of 100 MW round-the-clock carbon-free power to its smelter in Odisha.