According to reports from brokerage firms ICICI Securities and Edelweiss, Ola Electric has invested $100 million in research and development (R&D) of lithium-ion battery cells
Ola Electric has reportedly hired more than 200 researchers for the R&D process. Currently, Ola Electric sources battery cells from South Korea-based LG Chem for its electric scooters.
Battery cells are the most expensive component of an electric vehicle and their manufacture can reduce costs by approximately 30%.
Ola co-founder Bhavish Aggarwal took to Twitter on Wednesday to introduce the company’s first homemade lithium-ion cell.
“The cell is the heart of the EV revolution. We need to make our technology to scale faster and innovate. Much more in the pipeline on our cell technology roadmap!” he tweeted.
Ola Electric aims to expand its internal capacity by 2026. The sample battery cell is the same as the battery cell used in your electric scooter now. The company will start with an initial cell production capacity of 20 GWh with 60% localization to meet its short-term demand without relying solely on LG Chem.
Ola Electric has been shortlisted for the government’s Rs 18,000-crore Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme to manufacture 130 GWh worth of batteries.
Ola’s 500-acre Future factory near Krishnagiri in Tamil Nadu will eventually have an annual manufacturing capacity of 10 million two-wheelers, including scooters and e-bikes, one million cars, and 100 GWh of battery cells.