BENGALURU: Tata Group’s battery venture Agratas Energy Storage Solutions Pvt Ltd has detailed the role of a Chinese company in its cell-manufacturing plans for the first time, disclosing a technology-absorption agreement with its partner, which it says has expertise in the two main types of lithium-ion batteries.
Agratas said it has an intellectual property (IP) agreement with China’s Envision Group-owned battery maker AESC Apollo Holding Ltd, which makes both NMC (nickel manganese cobalt) and LFP (lithium iron phosphate) batteries.
“The Company has entered into an IP agreement with a technology partner, AESC Apollo Holding Ltd. The technology partners bring in experience in LFP and NMC battery manufacturing. The Company is investing in R&D facilities and personnel to enable technology absorption and build internal capabilities in this nascent space,” Agratas said in annual financial filings with the ministry of corporate affairs last week.
The disclosure comes even as Chinese companies have been restricted by the government from transferring technology to overseas firms. The curbs have complicated bids of Indian companies such as JSW, which has put its 50 GWh cell plant on hold.
While Agratas said AESC is a technology partner, the Chinese-owned company referred to their arrangement as a joint venture in a filing in February.
“The joint venture designs, develops and manufactures high-quality, high-performance, sustainable battery solutions for multiple applications to match its customers' requirements,” AESC said in a filing dated 12 February with the UK’s Companies House.
LFP batteries are 20-30% cheaper and are more stable than NMC batteries. NMC batteries offer higher performance and are more diversified, with Japan and South Korea also having access to the technology.
Pragmatic response
Experts noted that such agreements are becoming increasingly par for the course as companies seek access to technology and find a place in the battery value chain.
“I would view this less as a dependency discussion and more as a pragmatic response by the incumbents adapting to a rapidly changing technology and geopolitical landscape. Global battery capabilities have been built through years of investment, manufacturing scale and learning,” said Vinay Piparsania, founder of Millenstrat Research and Advisory. “Partnering with established global technology leaders allows Indian companies to immediately enter the technology race and accelerate their own local development, all while building their ecosystems in parallel.”
Agratas India purchased sample cells from AESC’s Chinese subsidiary, AESC Jiangsu Co Ltd, to aid its own development of batteries, the filings showed. Its UK entity paid about 40 million pounds for asset purchases from AESC, Mint reported on 9 July.
AESC, based in Yokohama, Japan, entered the Agratas board in December 2024 with a 12% stake in the company.
UK factories
Founded in Japan in 2007 as a joint venture between Nissan Motor Company and NEC Corporation, AESC remains headquartered in Yokohama even after its founders sold a controlling stake to China's Envision Group, led by Zhang Lei, in 2018.
AESC Apollo Holding, the entity that has a stake in Agratas and agreed on the technology transfer, provides technology-related services to companies in the lithium-ion battery industry. Its parent company operates a 15 GWh lithium-ion gigafactory in Sunderland, UK.
Agratas is building a 40 GWh plant in the UK and a 20GWh facility in India for lithium-ion batteries to be used in both battery storage systems and electric vehicles. It has signed a ₹5,000 crore deal with Tata group company Jaguar Land Rover for the supply of EV batteries for seven years starting in FY27.
Agratas faces a potential delay in the construction of its gigafactory, which could push the timeline for the plant's commercialization to 2028 from the earlier-slated 2027, The Guardian reported in June.