International Battery Company, a startup developing lithium-ion battery cells for electric vehicles, has raised $35 million as it plans to bridge the demand-supply gap in India’s growing EV market.
Led by RTP Global, the pre-Series A round was led by Beenext, Veda VC and various strategic investors from Korea and the US. It comes ahead of a larger round in which the startup is looking to raise around $70 million, TechCrunch has learned and confirmed exclusively.
India is home to more than 3.5 million electric vehicles, with nearly half of them being electric two-wheelers and less than 10% four-wheelers, with the rest consisting of e-rickshaws, three-wheelers and a small number of electric buses, according to the data. available on Indian Govt Vahan Portal. The numbers are insignificant as more than 23 million vehicles were sold in the country in 2023 alone.
However, EVs’ market share is expected to increase thanks to new regulations and incentives offered to manufacturers. New Delhi aims to limit internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles through electrification 30% of its total four-wheeler base and 80% of the two-wheeler and three-wheeler market by 2030.
The International Battery Company sees an opportunity in this shift.
Currently, EV batteries used in the Indian market are imported—mainly from China—raising safety and sustainability concerns. These battery packs are not adequately designed for local conditions nor are they properly constructed to withstand wear and tear. This has even led to some cases of electric two-wheelers catching fire. International Battery Company is trying to address these issues and meet both the current and projected EV battery demand in the country with its in-house Li-ion battery cells.
“There is a lot of demand in the Indian market, which is being met through imports at the moment. No cells are manufactured in India. So we want to be part of this journey in India,” Priyadarshi Panda, founder and CEO of International Battery Company, told TechCrunch in an interview.
Setting the scene for local production
The Delaware-based startup, which was founded by Panda in 2022, specializes in the manufacture of large-sized Prismatic Li-ion Nickel Manganese Cobalt (NMC) rechargeable batteries. The startup is targeting the small mobility segment which includes two-wheelers and three-wheelers, light commercial vehicles (LCVs) and agricultural and industrial equipment.
The startup researches and develops its battery technology in Silicon Valley and produces Li-ion cells at its 50 MWh manufacturing plant in South Korea, which are designed specifically for the Indian market — meeting the requirements for safe operation at high temperatures, supporting fast charging capabilities and offers extended life cycles, with a 7 to 10 year warranty.
The facility, which produces NMC lithium-ion battery cells based on UN 38.3 standards that are fully recyclable and reusable, helped the startup make its first commercial shipment this month. The startup received certification from India’s standards body, Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), in December to start selling EV batteries in the country.
Alongside production in South Korea, International Battery Company signed a memorandum of understanding with the government in the southern state of Karnataka last year to build a 10 GWh facility in Bangalore by 2028. The startup initially plans to build a 2 GWh facility in the state by 2025 on an area of 100 acres that will be an “exact » of its existing Korean factory.
Panda, an IIT Kanpur and MIT graduate who has worked as a senior process engineer at Intel, head of productivity at Lam Research and director at Applied Materials, has more than 980 citations worldwide from seven research publications and 12 granted US patents. He has previously helped build a Prismatic phosphate-based Li-ion gigafactory in New York and a Prismatic Li-ion NMC plant in Korea. Based on his experience, the executive plans to develop International Battery Company’s facilities in India.
The startup has already started talks with investors about raising a $70 million Series A round to execute plans to build its mega-factory in India, according to TechCrunch.
When asked, Panda confirmed the additional fundraising plans. He said the startup will reach 30% to 50% of its $35 million funding goal with its product certified and reaching initial customers. The rest of its funding is aimed at developing a data system with AI and ML algorithms to improve performance — before it gets to the next round.
“As funding is a long process, we are trying to just feel the market, see who would be the right kind of partners to primarily enable the plan to execute the Indian gigafactory,” he said. “We are proactively preparing to execute the construction of the megafactory in India, which we will do with the additional fundraising.”
Separate tip
Notably, the International Battery Company is not alone in building Li-ion battery facilities in India. Companies including Indian software conglomerate Tata Group, South Korean automaker Hyundai, Vietnamese electric vehicle maker VinFast and Bengaluru-based electric two-wheeler maker Ola Electric have also announced plans to build EV battery facilities in the country. Similarly, the global EV market features BYD, LG Energy Solution, SK Innovation and Panasonic, among major companies, in battery manufacturing. However, Panda said International Battery Company’s approach to being a Li-ion product company sets them apart from the competition as it designs cells keeping in mind the demands of Indian consumers.
“We are a participant in the ecosystem, along with other players who have announced plans to build Li-ion cell gigafactories in India. And together, we will enable solutions for the end customers… and together we can bring the upstream value chain, whether it’s powders, separators, electrolyte, all the components, the whole value chain to electric vehicles,” Panda said.
International Battery Company’s product-oriented approach convinced RTP Global to close the deal amid an ongoing market slowdown and a growing trend where VC firms are largely shying away from investing millions of dollars in startups yet to generate revenue.
“A lot of people have been trying to make batteries for India for the last four or five years, even the big guys. But there hasn’t been any meaningful production at this stage that anyone could approach because it’s a very, very complex product,” Nishit Garg, partner at RTP Global, told TechCrunch. “THE [International Battery Company] founders, and the way they’ve approached it so far is very different from many others. They have landed and are quite focused on execution rather than making news about it.”
International Battery Company’s initial focus is to serve customers in India and has already started working with two of the three customers on board belonging to the two-wheeler and three-wheeler segments. In the next round, Panda told TechCrunch that the plan is to partner with manufacturers of industrial and agricultural equipment. Based on this knowledge, the startup wants to gradually develop battery cells for the large segment of mobility, starting with buses and trucks and later expanding to electric cars. It also aspires to expand its horizons beyond India as it moves forward.
“Once, with a focused approach, we penetrate and provide compelling solutions to the customer base in India, mainly in the small mobility segment, we are in two-wheelers, three-wheelers, LCVs, agricultural and industrial equipment, then we will look at other markets like Korea, North America and Europe,” Panda said.
While the executive did not disclose the names of any customers, the International Battery Company said in one of its recent investor presentations, which TechCrunch reviewed separately, that it includes two-wheeler makers Ather Energy, River and Matter, three-wheeler maker Euler Motors, EV charging tech startup Exponent Energy and automaker Hyundai, among a few other companies that are available to its customers. The startup also plans to generate $350 million in annual revenue in its second phase of operations between December 2024 and 2025, with the 2 GWh generation facility, according to details available on its investor deck.
As some companies explore alternative lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles to reduce reliance on lithium and investigate sodium-ion cells as a possible solution, International Battery Company is also doing its R&D on the subject in the US
“The fundamental integration is very similar to lithium ion. So with the maturity of the technology and the markets that really demand it, we would know that and very likely be able to make sodium ion solutions as well,” Panda said.
Panda is joined by co-founders Raj Singh (CRO), Venkatesh Valluri (chairman) and Sasi Kuppannagari (COO). The startup has 100 people, including 75 operating in South Korea and 10–12 full-time employees and consultants in the US. It is currently hiring in India to expand its local team of half a dozen people.
