Amara Raja Energy & Mobility has commissioned a ₹500 crore Customer Qualification Plant (CQP) at its Giga Corridor in Telangana — and the facility's real job is not to make a lot of batteries. It is to prove, cell by cell, that Amara Raja's lithium-ion cells work for real OEM customers before the company bets thousands of crores on full-scale production. The 60 MWh plant is the intermediate manufacturing step between lab-scale R&D and the company's planned 2 GWh Giga 1 commercial facility, targeted for calendar year 2027. First validation cells ship to automotive and industrial clients in August 2026.
Last verified: 2026-07-29
- Amara Raja invested ₹500 crore in the CQP; it sits inside a broader ₹9,500 crore, 16 GWh Giga Corridor programme.
- Initial capacity: 60 MWh. Cell formats: cylindrical and prismatic. Workforce: 100+.
- First customer validation samples: August 2026.
- First commercial facility, Giga 1 (2 GWh): production targeted June 2027 (CY2027).
- Amara Raja FY26 revenue: ₹13,549 crore; PBT: ₹1,307 crore; EPS: ₹53.02.
What is a Customer Qualification Plant (CQP)?
A Customer Qualification Plant is a mid-scale factory that makes real cells on equipment mirroring future commercial lines so OEMs can test and approve them before committing to a full-scale supply contract. Amara Raja's CQP at the Telangana Giga Corridor does exactly that — it sits deliberately between the company's ePositive Energy Labs research centre (the R&D arm) and the upcoming Giga 1 high-volume plant. The 60 MWh line is small enough to be reconfigurable (it supports multiple chemistries and both cylindrical and prismatic formats) but large enough that the cells it produces are representative of what commercial manufacturing will yield.
This matters because of a hard reality in battery manufacturing: cells that perform well in a lab do not automatically perform well when stamped out at scale. Materials behave differently under different equipment tolerances. Process variations accumulate. The CQP is where Amara Raja works out those kinks — and where customers like Piaggio and Ather Energy can hold production-grade cells in their hands, run their own validation cycles, and sign off.
Why did Amara Raja build this intermediate step before the gigafactory?
Amara Raja built the CQP first because customer-validated cells de-risk the transition from hundreds of crores to thousands of crores of capex. The company's total Giga Corridor investment is ₹9,500 crore over ten years for 16 GWh of capacity — a bet large enough that committing to it before OEMs have signed off on the cell chemistry would be reckless. The CQP, at ₹500 crore, is roughly 5% of the total programme's cost and is designed to absorb the learning curve that would otherwise hit during full-scale run-up.
Phase 1 investment across the Giga Corridor now exceeds ₹1,500 crore, with the CQP (₹500 crore), the ePositive Energy Labs R&D centre, and the battery pack assembly plant (1.5 GWh, inaugurated in August 2024) all part of that cumulative spend. The Giga 1 commercial facility — 2 GWh — is the next major capex item, with commercial production targeted for June 2027.
The sequence is deliberate: prove the cell with customers at small scale, then scale. Without that step, the company would be betting its entire capital outlay on cells no customer has yet approved for their specific vehicle and use case.
How does the CQP fit into Amara Raja's 16 GWh Giga Corridor plan?
| Component | Capacity | Investment | Status (July 2026) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Customer Qualification Plant (CQP) | 60 MWh | ₹500 crore | Commissioned July 15, 2026 |
| ePositive Energy Labs (R&D) | Lab-scale | Part of ₹1,500 crore Phase 1 | Operational |
| Battery Pack Assembly Plant | 1.5 GWh (Phase 1) | Part of ₹1,500 crore Phase 1 | Inaugurated Aug 2024; 5 GWh planned |
| Giga 1 (commercial cell manufacturing) | 2 GWh | Part of ₹9,500 crore programme | Targeted June 2027 |
| Full Giga Corridor | 16 GWh cells + 5 GWh packs | ₹9,500 crore over 10 years | Phased buildout; targeted by 2031 |
The CQP is the first live piece of the Giga Corridor’s cell manufacturing vision — everything learned running the qualification plant feeds directly into the design and ramp of Giga 1. Vikramadithya Gourineni, Executive Director – New Energy Business at ARE&M, stated during the FY26 earnings call that the first 2 GWh of cell manufacturing remains on track for June 2027, and that "everything learned running this qualification plant is meant to feed directly into that transition."
The corridor — spread across 262 acres in Divitipally, Mahbubnagar district — was first announced in December 2022 through a memorandum of understanding with the Telangana government. At the time, the investment commitment was ₹9,500 crore over ten years targeting up to 16 GWh of cell manufacturing capacity and a 5 GWh battery pack assembly unit.
For builders following India's industrial infrastructure stack — including who is pouring capital into clean-tech-adjacent capacity — see how RMZ and Colt's $21 billion Visakhapatnam data centre fits alongside domestic manufacturing pushes. India's energy and compute buildout are converging.
What lithium-ion cell chemistries and formats does the CQP produce?
The CQP is designed to manufacture lithium-ion cells in both cylindrical and prismatic formats, across multiple chemistries. Two chemistries anchor Amara Raja's strategy:
- LFP (Lithium Iron Phosphate): Licensed from Gotion-InoBat-Batteries (GIB), a joint venture between Gotion High-Tech and InoBat. The technical licensing agreement, signed in June 2024, gives Amara Raja access to Gotion's LFP cell IP, supply chain integration, and manufacturing support — specifically for cylindrical and prismatic LFP cells suited to Indian operating conditions.
- NMC (Nickel Manganese Cobalt): Sourced through an agreement with Jiangsu Highstar Battery Manufacturing Co. NMC cells offer higher energy density, making them suited to two-wheeler and performance applications.
The dual-chemistry approach reflects a real engineering trade-off: LFP is cheaper, safer, and longer-lasting; NMC packs more energy per kilogram. By qualifying both chemistries on the same flexible line, Amara Raja can serve different OEM needs without building separate capital-intensive lines — Piaggio wants LFP cells for three-wheeler EVs, Ather Energy wants both NMC and LFP for two-wheelers.
This mirrors another India manufacturing pattern — companies like Seoul Semiconductor are also betting on multi-format local production tuned to Indian conditions rather than importing a single global standard. The pattern is the same across clean-tech.
Who are Amara Raja's battery cell customers?
Amara Raja has signed memoranda of understanding with at least two named OEMs for cell development and supply from the Giga Corridor:
- Piaggio Vehicles Pvt Ltd (August 2024 MoU): Development and supply of LFP cells and chargers for Piaggio's electric three-wheelers, plus battery packs for upcoming two-wheeler offerings. Since 2020, Amara Raja has already supplied 50,000 NMC Li-ion battery packs and EV chargers to Piaggio India, with a cumulative run exceeding 120 crore kilometres.
- Ather Energy (August 2024 MoU): Co-development and supply of NMC and LFP cells for Ather's two-wheeler battery packs, produced locally at the Telangana gigafactory.
Both partnerships are cell-focused — the CQP's reason for existence. Amara Raja supplies battery packs today; the qualification plant is about proving the cell layer beneath those packs before scaling.
How much is Amara Raja investing, and can it fund the full 16 GWh?
Amara Raja's financial profile supports the phased buildout, though the full 16 GWh will require external capital beyond internal accruals.
| Metric (FY26) | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue from operations | ₹13,549 crore | FY26 earnings release |
| Profit before tax (PBT) | ₹1,307 crore | FY26 earnings release |
| Profit after tax (PAT) | ₹970 crore | FY26 earnings release |
| Earnings per share (EPS) | ₹53.02 | FY26 earnings release |
| New energy segment revenue growth | ~60% YoY | FY26 earnings release |
| Capex plan FY27 | ₹1,500–1,700 crore (₹400 cr lead-acid + ₹1,100–1,200 cr new energy) | Management commentary, May 2026 |
| Debt-to-equity ratio | 0.05 | FY26 results |
| Operating cash flow (FY26) | ₹1,340 crore | FY26 results |
| Free cash flow (FY26) | ₹588 crore | FY26 results |
Chairman Jayadev Galla told reporters in August 2024 that the initial phases (up to 8–10 GWh) would be funded through internal accruals and borrowings, but that capacity expansion beyond that would require equity. The company's low leverage (debt-to-equity of 0.05) and strong lead-acid battery cash flows give it room to internally finance the early buildout, with FY27 capex of ₹1,500–1,700 crore specifically earmarked for new energy expansion.
How does Amara Raja compare to India's other lithium-ion cell manufacturers?
Amara Raja is one of several Indian companies building lithium-ion cell capacity. As of mid-2025, only Ola Electric had operational cell production (1.4 GWh Phase 1a, cylindrical NMC 2170, started March 2024 in Krishnagiri, Tamil Nadu). Amara Raja's customer validation-first approach differs from Ola Electric's captive-vertical model, where Ola makes cells for its own scooters.
| Company | Location | Planned Cell Capacity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Amara Raja (ARE&M) | Divitipally, Telangana | 16 GWh (₹9,500 cr, 10 yr) | CQP commissioned July 2026; Giga 1 (2 GWh) targeted June 2027 |
| Ola Electric | Krishnagiri, Tamil Nadu | 5–6.4 GWh | Phase 1a operational since March 2024 |
| Exide Energy Solutions | Bengaluru, Karnataka | 6 GWh Phase 1 (12 GWh total) | Under construction; Phase 1 targeted ~end 2024–25 |
| Tata Group (Agratas) | Sanand, Gujarat | 20 GWh | Construction targeted to start; full integration by 2028 |
| Reliance New Energy | Jamnagar, Gujarat | 30 GWh (battery systems) | Phase 1 (packs/systems) targeted H2 2026; cell capacity later |
Amara Raja is not a PLI ACC beneficiary directly, but India's broader PLI ACC scheme — a ₹18,100 crore programme approved by the Cabinet in May 2021, targeting 50 GWh of advanced chemistry cell manufacturing — has allocated 40 GWh across four companies (Reliance New Energy Solar, Ola Electric, Hyundai Global Motors, and Rajesh Exports). The scheme requires beneficiaries to reach 25% domestic value addition within two years and 60% within five.
What this means for you
If you build or invest in India's clean-tech and EV stack, Amara Raja's CQP is a leading indicator. By August 2026, first customer validation cells ship — which means by late 2026 and early 2027 OEMs will have data on whether domestic Indian lithium-ion cells meet their spec. If those validation passes succeed, Giga 1's June 2027 target becomes credible. If they reveal gaps (cycle life, thermal performance, cost-per-kWh), the timeline slips.
For small businesses building EVs, battery packs, or grid storage products, the practical read is: domestic cell supply at meaningful volume is still 12–18 months out. Battery pack assembly is happening now (Amara Raja's 1.5 GWh pack plant is operational), but the cell layer — the most capital-intensive and technically difficult part of the battery value chain — is still at the qualification stage. Partnerships with cell makers that are already through the CQP stage will have a meaningful lead when commercial capacity comes online.
For those tracking related India industrial investment patterns — the Ford Tamil Nadu engine plant revival, Tamil Nadu's electronics manufacturing clusters, and Odisha's industrial stack push — the same de-risking logic applies across sectors: prove the unit economics on a pilot line before committing gigafactory capital.
FAQ
Q: What is a Customer Qualification Plant (CQP)? A: A CQP is a mid-scale manufacturing facility that produces cells on equipment mirroring future commercial lines, so OEM customers can test and validate cell performance before the manufacturer commits to full-scale production. Amara Raja's 60 MWh CQP in Telangana bridges lab-scale R&D and the company's planned 2 GWh Giga 1 commercial facility.
Q: How much did Amara Raja invest in the Telangana CQP? A: Amara Raja invested approximately ₹500 crore in the Customer Qualification Plant. This is part of a cumulative Phase 1 investment exceeding ₹1,500 crore across the broader ₹9,500 crore, 16 GWh Giga Corridor programme in Telangana.
Q: When will Amara Raja start commercial-scale lithium-ion cell production? A: Commercial-scale cell production is targeted for June 2027 (CY2027), when the 2 GWh Giga 1 facility is scheduled to begin operations. Customer validation samples from the CQP start shipping in August 2026.
Q: What cell formats and chemistries does Amara Raja's CQP produce? A: The CQP manufactures both cylindrical and prismatic lithium-ion cells across multiple chemistries — primarily LFP (licensed from Gotion-InoBat-Batteries) and NMC (sourced from Jiangsu Highstar Battery Manufacturing Co.).
Q: Who are Amara Raja's cell customers? A: Amara Raja has signed MoUs with Piaggio Vehicles (for LFP cells and chargers for electric three-wheelers and upcoming two-wheelers) and Ather Energy (for NMC and LFP cells for two-wheeler battery packs).
Q: Is Amara Raja part of India's PLI ACC scheme? A: Amara Raja is building lithium-ion cell capacity independently of the government's ₹18,100 crore PLI ACC scheme, which has allocated 40 GWh to four companies (Reliance New Energy Solar, Ola Electric, Hyundai Global Motors, and Rajesh Exports). Amara Raja's Giga Corridor is a company-funded and equity-funded programme.
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