The new plant, to be set up near Sambalpur in Odisha, will be commissioned by 2025. The investment will be funded through internal accruals, the aluminium rolling and recycling company said in a stock filing on Tuesday. The plant will initially produce 25,000 tonnes of the product.
“Hindalco is getting good technical and commercial traction and, hence, it has already started getting into MoUs (memorandums of understanding) and capacity booking for the new facility with customers across the world,” said Satish Pai, managing director, Hindalco Industries.
By 2030, demand for battery-grade aluminium foil in India is expected to grow manifold to 40,000 tonnes, primarily driven by mushrooming growth in gigafactories for advanced cell manufacturing, the company said in a statement.
High-performance aluminium foils are used by cell makers as a current collector for cathode materials.
According to industry data, India has spent around $1.8 billion to import 548.6 million units of kWh-grade lithium-ion batteries during the first seven months of 2022-23 (April-November 2022), compared to imports of 616.7 million units for $1.83 billion in the full fiscal of 2021-22, indicating growth.
Apart from Hindalco, Shyam Metalics and Energy Ltd has also announced its entry into battery-grade aluminium foil manufacturing.
Hindalco achieved the technological breakthrough of manufacturing fine-quality battery foils at its Mouda unit in Maharashtra, which is now in the process of qualifying with lithium-ion cell manufacturers in India, Europe and the US.
The new Odisha unit will further augment the capability to supply material to gigafactories across the world, the company added in a statement.
The company, through these series of investments, wants to catalyze its metamorphosis from a manufacturer of metal to a provider of high-tech metal solutions.
“Hindalco is making various investments in battery materials and technologies towards building Aatmanirbhar Bharat, and investment in this new battery foil mill is another such step in this direction, developing the high-performance battery foil at a breakneck speed,” Pai added.
“The company is already developing such foils to raise the bar on mechanical strength, fine-tune the thickness, and enhance surface characteristics of these advanced application foils. It is working on new coatings on the battery foils that will boost performance by delivering better adhesion, lower resistance, and reduced corrosion. It will tap its robust R&D to provide tailor-made solutions for its customers,” the company added in a statement.
Additionally, the company is 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 developed for the first time in India, it said.
The company’s consolidated profit in Q2FY23 remained flat year-on-year (y-o-y) at ₹2,196 crore, while consolidated revenue from operations stood at ₹54,169 crore, down 3.7% y-o-y, primarily due to a decline in global copper prices. Consolidated earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortization (Ebitda) stood at ₹6,096 crore, a 6% rise y-o-y, with an Ebitda margin of 11.25%.
The company’s scrip rose marginally to close at ₹527.55 on Tuesday.
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Published: 12 Dec 2023, 11:33 PM IST