Amara Raja sets up lithium cell unit in Divitipally

Divitipally (Mahbubnagar): Telangana will soon have its first gigafactory in Mahbubnagar district to produce lithium cell and battery packs with an ultimate capacity of up to 16 GWh and 5 GWh respectively.

Ground-breaking ceremony for the project was held in a grand manner by Amara Raja Batteries on Saturday and was graced by Minister for Industries K T Rama Rao.

The facility also aims to create direct employment for about 4,500 people and a similar number of indirect jobs that will make significant contributions to the socio-economic development in the region, said Amara Raja Group Chairman Ramachandra N Galla and Managing Director Jayadev Galla.

The group would be investing over Rs 9,500 crore over a period of 10 years for setting up research and development, and a greenfield manufacturing facility for lithium-ion battery-making in Telangana.

Addressing the gathering, K T Rama Rao said that more than eight States competed for the lithium-ion battery factory and their chief ministers had showered offers to lure the group to their States. But the family did not yield and finally chose to set up the company in Divitipalli in Telangana.

The minister rubbished the criticism that the battery industry would create pollution in Divitipalli. He assured that the Amara Raja facility at Divitipalli involved zero pollution as was the case with their facility at Chittoor district in Andhra Pradesh.

Recalling the doubts expressed many a decade ago before bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh, KTR said even the former minister of the undivided state Galla Aruna Kumari, who is part of Amara Raja group was also one of the leaders who raised doubts on the demand for separate Telangana state. He said today Aruna was fully convinced that the demand for separate Telangana was a genuine demand.

KTR said that the success of Telangana experiment has disproved all its critics, with the State becoming the most favoured destination for big investors like Amara Raja Batteries.