New Delhi: IIT Hyderabad-incubated start-up PURE EV Wednesday said it is partnering with CSIR-Central Electro Chemical Research Institute (CECRI) to indigenise lithium-ion battery (LIB) technology for electric vehicles.
The company has signed an MoU with CSIR-CECRI to undertake joint research on production of battery packs, validation of LIB cells and addressing the specific requirements to ensure the suitability of developed LIBs for critical performance at the Standard Operating Procedure (SoP) conditions, PURE EV said in a statement.
Commenting on the partnership, PURE EV CEO Rohit Vadera said, “We will work closely with CECRI team in enabling them to realise the full potential of their initiative. We will carry out extensive testing for performance validation across various EV 2W (two-wheeler) models across the pan India terrain conditions and benchmark with respect to the imported cells and providing them crucial feedback to achieve mass scale commercialisation.”
This collaboration to manufacture lithium batteries with indigenous cells for the company’s high-speed EV 2W is a matter of pride for PURE EV due to the long term interests of the nation, he added.
“Our extensive R&D work in the battery thermal management system gives us unique insights in the battery performance and lifecycle enhancement,” Vadera added.
CSIR has launched a project titled, ‘CSIR Innovation Centre for Next Generation Energy Storage Solutions (ICeNGESS)’ with an aim to produce LIBs on a 100 MW scale in order to address dependency on imports of lithium cells from China for final battery packs required for electric vehicles.
Being a part of startup PuREnergy that is engaged in design and development of advanced LIBs manufacturing with core focus on battery thermal management system, PURE EV qualifies as one of the top picks in this mission, the company said.
Quoting NITI Aayog member V K Saraswat, the statement said, “Achieving self-reliance and developing core competence in lithium cells manufacturing is critical for the emergence of electric vehicles as a predominant mode of transportation in India.”
He further said, “Since we are starting from a low base, it is critical that the eminent institutions working in the cell manufacturing also collaborate with the industry partners who can carry out accelerated testing to provide the necessary feedback for further improvements.”
“This collaboration between PURE EV and CECRI will lead to important outcomes on areas like Battery Thermal Management System (BTMS) and safety which are critical for mass scale commercialisation of these cells. NITI Aayog strongly encourages such partnerships which can lead to a more flexible supply chain for the evolution for an important industry like electric vehicles.”
CSIR-CECRI Director N Kalaiselvi said CECRI is working on mission mode under the project titled “CSIR Innovation Centre for Next Generation Energy Storage Solutions (ICeNGESS)”, which would enable indigenous Lithium-Ion technology to help the country in addressing the requirements of its mission on electrification of two/three/four wheelers apart from stationary and storage applications.
“The emphasis of this program falls under the umbrella of Make in India and Aatmanirbhar Bharat initiatives of the GoI. We look forward to a very fruitful collaboration with PURE EV who will be our industry partner in the battery pack assembly, testing and performance benchmarking. We intend that such partnerships open up doors for further collaboration opportunities,” Kalaiselvi added.
PTI