Bengaluru-headquartered advanced battery-technology and deep-technology startup Log9 Materials, has unveiled India’s first indigenously-developed cell manufacturing facility at Log9 campus, Jakkuru, Bengaluru, thereby in effect taking the very first step towards making India self-reliant (thus enabling #AatmanirbharBharat) in meeting the nation’s future electric mobility goals. This state-of-the-art cell manufacturing facility built by Log9 is going to be South East Asia’s largest cell production line. At a time when the majority of the cells and batteries used in India’s electric vehicles are being imported from other countries, this development adds a new lease of life for the country’s mobility vision to turn to electric significantly by 2030. More so, this milestone also puts India on the global map of deep-tech organizations, which will further pave the way for the new-generation Indian startups to rise and shine in the deep-technology arena in the times to come.
The inauguration day of the country’s first cell manufacturing line was proudly called as ‘Day Zero’ by Log9 Materials; this day also marked Log9’s 7th anniversary, since the startup’s inception in 2015. Day Zero refers to the starting point in terms of reimagining electric mobility in India and redefining innovation for the years to come, and most importantly, commemorating a special day marking the auspicious beginning of an everlasting transformation in India’s EV sector. The event was hosted with the objective to not just to celebrate this momentous achievement by Log9, but also to address some of the most pertinent and noteworthy questions and concerns pertaining to India’s EV transformation ecosystem today. Notably, with the newly-launched facility, Log9 is aiming to achieve at least 50MWh of peak cell production capacity in the next one year, and then they would be scaling to over 5GWh in the next five years.
Day Zero catalyzed and provided impetus to Log9’s foundation of the Responsible Delivery Movement — an initiative where they strive to reduce the carbon footprint generated by the last mile logistics sector in India. At The Day Zero observance by Log9, Dr. K Sivan, Ex-Chairperson, Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) was present as the Chief Guest, and Smt. Gunjan Krishna, IAS, Commissioner, Department of Industries & Commerce, Government of Karnataka was the Guest of Honour. Among other notable dignitaries and guests present included Log9’s investors, advisors, business partners and ecosystem partners, including senior leaders and representatives from companies like Amara Raja Batteries Limited (ARBL), Umicore, CBC and BluSmart, among others.
Speaking at the event, Dr. K Sivan, Ex-Chairperson, ISRO drew a parallel of ISRO founder Dr. Vikram Sarabhai’s vision with Log9’s vision for India’s future advancement. “Just as Dr. Sarabhai many years back understood and laid emphasis on indigenous innovation to advance and reap large scale benefits of space-tech, similarly Log9’s pathbreaking indigenous research and infrastructure development shall bring India closer to self-reliance in energy storage and EV sectors in the near future,” said Dr. K Sivan.
He further added, “Today, materials science and tech competency is the need of the hour for India’s advancement, and Log9 is already doing wonderful work in this area. I am confident that indigenously produced cells and batteries in India pioneered by Log9 and backed by innovative technology and cell chemistry and high energy density will not only make India proud and self-reliant, but also in the long run create history for India and the entire world. I believe that with Indian companies like Log9 taking the lead and showing the way forward for disruption and innovation in our country, the day is not very far when even foreign giant companies like Tesla would be procuring cells from us!”
Smt. Gunjan Krishna, IAS, Commissioner, Department of Industries & Commerce, Government of Karnataka congratulated Log9 for its unique achievement and said, “It is inspiring and exciting to see the work done by Indian startups like Log9 helping the nation’s climate action goals as well as advancing the cause of bettering our Planet. It is imperative today to build climate-friendly technologies and products as the country increasingly moves from conventional fuel sources to alternate clean or renewable energy sources. And in enabling that, building innovative and future-ready energy storage solutions in India, for India will be the key. I am delighted to see Log9 taking a step forward to that with its extraordinary batteries and cell manufacturing capabilities.”
Dr. Akshay Singhal, Co-Founder and CEO, Log9 Materials said, “We at Log9 are extremely proud and happy to launch India’s first cell manufacturing line, which reflects a giant leap forward in empowering India with all the flexibility and scale that would be required to give the country the right impetus for ushering its EV-led future. Thus, for Log9, Day Zero marks the day that will usher a new era of India-made cells for India. This special Day also marks our 7th anniversary and is therefore presented as a culmination of the groundbreaking efforts by LogNiners throughout our seven-year-long journey so far. Our cells have been designed grounds-up in India, for India; and this means that Log9’s cells and batteries are the best suited for Indian operating conditions, climate and customers, and hence they are going to play a crucial role in making India self-reliant while helping the nation realize its ambitious electric mobility vision. With the momentum garnered from Log9’s Day Zero event, we will be going onwards and upwards and pledge to do everything possible to enable our country to accelerate and lead within the intersectional areas of e-mobility, EV-tech, clean energy and clean tech, sustainability and deep technologies.”
Kartik Hajela, Co-Founder and COO, Log9 Materials added, “It is ironical but true that India, despite being a talent-dense economy, still starves of grounds-up innovation in the field of deep-tech and EV-tech. When we at Log9 started our journey, we could have either borrowed from what was present in the market and further built on it; but we instead chose to work on a blank canvas, and over the years, with multiple trials, errors and failures, we have been able to better our product and technologies. And today, with utmost pride, we can announce that we have finally made our mark by bringing to India, the best of the battery and cell technology available. India as a market demands products designed bespoke for the country and not carried forward from some other market. In that respect, we have been able to understand the pulse of the market and our customers well and hence bring to them the best that the world has to offer. Be it designing products or the impact they have on the ecosystem to enable our stakeholders to bring about a positive difference to the larger world, it is Responsibility that drives Log9, and shall carry forward our transformative legacy in the times to come.”
