Reliance denies report of pausing battery cell plans, says manufacturing strategy unchanged

India’s Reliance Industries said on Monday that its plans for battery storage manufacturing remain unchanged, following a Bloomberg News report that said the conglomerate had paused plans to make lithium-ion battery cells in India after failing to secure Chinese technology.

”Reliance Industries strongly and categorically affirms that there has been no change in our plans for creating a world leading battery storage manufacturing ecosystem from Cell to containerised ESS (energy storage system) and that they are progressing well in line with our target timelines,” a company spokesperson said in an email to Reuters.

The Mukesh Ambani-led conglomerate, which aimed to start manufacturing cells this year, had been in discussions with Chinese firm Xiamen Hithium Energy Storage Technology to license cell technology, Bloomberg News reported on Sunday, citing people who did not want to be identified.

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The talks stalled after Xiamen withdrew from the proposed partnership following China’s curbs on overseas technology transfers in key sectors, prompting Reliance to refocus on assembling battery energy storage systems, the report said.

Reuters could not immediately verify the report.

Last October, Beijing announced controls on exports of lithium battery components, requiring exporters to obtain permits, tightening China’s grip on technology critical for energy storage and electric vehicles.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Firstpost staff.)