India’s Amara Raja Batteries’ (Amara) board of directors has approved the plan to set up a tubular battery plant in India.
“The proposed project for tubular battery manufacturing facility which was approved at the board meeting held today will support to accelerate the growth momentum and secure us additional market share in the near future,” said Amara vice chairman and managing director Jayadev Galla.
The location of the 1.44m/year unit plant has not been disclosed, although the investment is reportedly in the region of 5 billion rupees ($81m).
According to the company, tubular batteries have a longer life expectancy than normal flat plate batteries, less water loss and are also suitable for high-end applications.
Amara produces industrial and automotive lead-acid batteries. The battery manufacturer will also expand into the solar and motive power markets.
The company also aims to target the solar storage market with its products. Its motive power batteries are aimed to be supplied to a wide variety of electric powered transportation systems, including the railway market.
In 2013, Amara and Exide Industries dominated the Indian lead-acid battery market with a 90% market share. The lead-acid battery market is expected to continue growing in India over the next four years, according to a report by market consultants Netscribes.
