Log9 Materials, a Bengaluru-headquartered nanotechnology company, which manufactures electric vehicle cells and battery packs, is actively looking to expand its manufacturing capacity to the Middle East, said Akshay Singhal, Co-Founder and CEO, Log9 Materials.
Log9 is running pilot programs for three-wheelers in South Africa, Kenya, and Indonesia, and will also launch pilot programs in the UAE, Nepal, and Bangladesh.
“We are in conversations with a few parties to establish contacts in various markets, such as the Middle East, where we intend to create a regional presence. Until we open more factories, India will be the manufacturing base itself,” said the CEO. Currently, it has two factories in Bengaluru spread over an area of five acres. In FY22, it earned ₹24.5 crore in revenue.
According to Singhal, they are working with 15 original equipment manufacturers, such as Hero Electric, Pinnacle Industries, Omega Seiki Mobility, and more, across two-wheeler, three-wheeler, and four-wheeler platforms. “We will stick to these platforms and scale them for the next 10 to 12 months.” He added that next year, they will have trucks on platforms and they are working with three different OEMs, which will be announced soon.
Cell price
The start-up is also working to reduce the cost of cells, said Singhal. “The price of LTO (lithium titanate) ranges between $600 to $900 per kilowatt hour. We are trying to bring it down to less than $200 per kilowatt hour.” The company manufactures LTO and LFP (lithium iron phosphate) cells.
“We are in the R&D phase and will set up a pilot line, which will come online by Jan-Feb of 2023. This will be the largest EV cell line in Southeast Asia. Once that is done, we will start setting up the Giga factory,” Singhal explained. It sources its raw materials from countries, including China, Korea, and Germany.
Manufacturing capacity
“Collectively, we produce around 400 battery packs for two and three-wheelers in a month. We plan to ramp up to produce around 3500 units in a month, and the production line will be commissioned by April-May of FY23. By FY24, it will further expand to around 30,000–35,000 units per month,” stated the CEO.
For cell manufacturing, the start-up is coming up with a self-fabrication facility in the range of 100-megawatt hours of capacity. Singhal said, “It will come by Jan-Feb of the coming year. After that, we will start building the Giga factory in the next few years.”
Published on October 23, 2022
