The Union Minister of Heavy Industries Mahindra Nath Pandey has said that production of the first set of advanced chemistry cell (ACC) batteries in India is likely to commence by January 2024. He said all the demand for the ACCs is currently being met through imports in India.

Pandey has stated that in May 2021, the government approved the PLI (Production Linked Incentives) scheme for manufacturing ACC batteries at an estimated outlay of Rs 18,100 crore.  ACCs are the new generation advanced energy storage technologies that can store electric energy, either as electrochemical or chemical energy and convert it back to electric energy as and when required.

The minister said the government has been coming up with various policies like PLI and FAME (Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Hybrid and Electric Vehicles) to support the automobile industry. He noted that the Rs 25,938 crore PLI scheme for the auto sector has been received well by the industry. He also said that after consulting with the industry, the government has extended the scheme by one year.