The Real Hyundai Stands up at Battery PLI Pre-bid Round
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Reliance, Hyundai Motor, Mahindra and JSW were among 18 participants in a pre-bid round for the production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme to make advanced chemistry cell (ACC) batteries in India, said people with knowledge of the matter. Others at the pre-bid meeting included TVS Lucas, Ather, Larsen & Toubro (L&T), Amara Raja, Exide and Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (BHEL).

The participation of the South Korean company is notable because a similarly named Hyundai Global Motors had got sops for setting up a 20 gigawatt hour (GWh) capacity in the earlier PLI auction round for ACC batteries, held in January 2022. It was eventually concluded that this was a case of impersonation and that Hyundai Global Motors had used fake documentation while bidding. ET first reported this in July 2022. Subsequently, the ministry of heavy industries (MHI) cancelled the capacity awarded to Hyundai Global Motors and called for rebids for the vacated capacity after a two-year gap.


Only 10 GWh up for Bidding


The development comes in the wake of ET’s February 5 report that Hyundai is considering listing its local unit in India. The company already has electric vehicle related plans.

“Any investments that the company makes, if it submits bids and is approved under the scheme, will be over and above the resources Hyundai is ploughing in to set up a battery assembly unit in Tamil Nadu,” said one of the officials who confirmed the development. In 2022, MHI had awarded incentives worth Rs 18,100 crore for setting up 50 GWh of manufacturing capacity by 2030. Ola Cell Technologies won the lion’s share with 20 GWh capacity. ACC Energy Storage, bidding as Rajesh Exports, and Reliance New Energy Battery Storage were awarded incentives for 5 GWh each.

The advanced chemistry cell PLI scheme has undergone a change since the previous round and elements of battery end-use have been incorporated. Of the 20 GWh awarded and taken back, only 10 GWh is up for bidding. Under the revised programme, this is meant for electric vehicle (EV) related battery applications. Bids for the remaining 10 GWh will separately be called—that will be for stationary battery applications such as solar power as well as grid balancing.


“There will be proper due diligence before bids are awarded to prevent a repeat of the earlier conundrum,” a senior government official said.

In January this year, Hyundai Motor India said it was looking at investing Rs 6,180 crore in Tamil Nadu to set up, among others, a hydrogen research centre in the state. The company is already in the process of investing Rs 20,000 crore (2023-2032) in Tamil Nadu to develop charging infrastructure and create an ecosystem for EV manufacturing.


Separately, Hyundai is also looking at investing Rs 7,000 crore in Maharashtra, where it has signed an agreement for acquiring General Motors’ defunct manufacturing facility in Talegaon.

 

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