Exide in talks with electric two-wheeler brands for battery supply

After partnering with Kia and Hyundai, popular battery maker Exide is now approaching electric two-wheeler manufacturers to supply batteries. "We are in active discussions with two-wheeler manufacturers who have an electric wheel programme. These discussions are at various stages for the supply of cells," Exide Energy Solutions Ltd (EESL) managing director and chief executive officer Arun Mittal told investors in a post-earnings call.

Exide has announced an additional investment of around Rs 1,000 crore and has already invested Rs 2,300 crore in the lithium-ion cell business. "As of now, we have invested Rs 2,000 crores in EESL. And earlier we invested Rs 300 crore in the pack and module-making unit. So put together, it comes to around Rs 2,300 crores. Now total investment as in phase one, capex will be approximately Rs 5,000 crores," Exide Industries director of Finance and CFO Asish Kumar Mukherjee said in the investor call.

Currently, the battery-maker has a partnership with China-based SVOLT Energy Technology, which develops and manufactures lithium-ion batteries. Exide has secured the rights to use SVOLT’s technology, which it intends to use in India. Exide is also currently building a gigafactory in Bengaluru for the manufacturing of its lithium-ion batteries. The company claims this plant will be ready and operational by 2025.