Why Solid-State Batteries Are a Game Changer

India’s unique mix of affordability concerns, growing EV demand, and infrastructure challenges makes it an ideal candidate for solid-state batteries adoption.

August 12, 2025. By News Bureau

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Nickel Manganese Cobalt

Lithium Ferro Phosphate

Lithium-ion batteries

RecycleKaro

Solid State Batteries

Fast-charging technologies

India’s EV market is growing by leaps and bounds. Walk through any major city and we can easily see—electric two- and three-wheelers zipping through the traffic, e-rickshaws lining up behind each other at traffic junctions, electric buses plying through almost every route, and EV charging stations appearing at all random places.

Although the Indian EV market is developing rapidly, it remains quite price sensitive. Driven by great urban traffic and affordability, two-wheelers lead. Electric micro-mobility choices, including rickshaws and scooters, have therefore become quite popular. Public transportation is changing too; electric buses are now used on both intracity and intercity routes. EV adoption is spreading across the board, whether it be private consumers, public transportation agencies, or corporate fleets.

Several main elements are fuelling this expansion:

Increasing fuel prices are pushing customers toward EVs, which offer lower running costs.
Stricter emissions rules, vehicle scrappage programs, and incentives for car manufacturers to go electric are all government initiatives.
Over the previous decade, lithium-ion battery costs have decreased by almost 85 percent, hence expanding EV access.

However, despite this improvement, a fundamental problem persists: battery safety and performance restrictions, which industry experts recognise but rarely discuss publicly.

Recent events have only heightened public attention. Several fire-related recalls involving major electric vehicle (EV) manufacturers have raised questions about the safety of modern battery technologies. These were not only minor production problems; they revealed the structural constraints in the chemistry of traditional lithium-ion batteries.

This is where solid-state batteries (SSBs) come in.

SSBs represent a major step forward in energy storage. Unlike conventional lithium-ion batteries with liquid electrolytes, SSBs employ solid materials. Longer range, quicker charging, greater safety, and a longer lifespan are among the many advantages this modification offers. It's a change that might redefine electric mobility, not only a technical improvement.

The Battery Chemistry Challenge

Electric Vehicles today are primarily powered by two battery types: Nickel Manganese Cobalt (NMC Batteries) and Lithium Ferro Phosphate (LFP Batteries). Both of these have trade-offs that have limited EV adoption to a small subset of the Indian populace.

NMC batteries have high energy density, but they are also prone to thermal runaway (which can lead to sudden battery fires). Recent battery fire incidents across brands like Ola, Okinawa, and PureEV, which have resulted in multiple vehicle recalls, highlight these flaws and make a compelling case for proper thermal management.

LFP batteries are comparatively safer than NMC, but they store less energy. This means they need to be heavier to provide a better range. However, any extra weight would hurt the vehicle’s performance, and a shorter range would deter buyers.

Apart from battery chemistry issues, there's also an infrastructure gap. Currently, India has around 12000+ public EV charging stations, which sounds promising, but it's quite low when we factor in our country's size and population. Limited charging access fuels range anxiety amongst EV users, which deters adoption. Lower demand, in turn, weakens the business case for expanding charging infrastructure—an unending loop.

Why Solid-State Batteries Are Different

In conventional batteries, lithium ions travel between electrodes via a liquid electrolyte. Using fluid as an Electrolyte has its own set of problems: it's flammable, degrades over time, and restricts how closely energy can be packed.

Solid State Batteries change the game by replacing the liquid (or Gel) based electrolyte with a Solid Electrolyte. This little update opens up several benefits:

Higher Energy Density: SSB can store significantly more energy in the same space, potentially doubling the range of current electric vehicles. Currently, the lithium-ion batteries deliver around 250-300 Wh/kg, whereas solid-state batteries promise 400-500 Wh/kg or even higher. This means that an electric scooter with 100 kilometres of range today could possibly provide 150 to 200 kilometres with the same battery weight.

Faster Charging: SSBs can be charged quickly, with some prototypes almost reaching 80 percent capacity in just 15 minutes. Breakthroughs like this could make EV charging as quick and easy as filling a petrol or diesel fuel tank.

Enhanced Safety: Solid-state batteries replace the flammable liquid found in today's batteries with solid compounds that simply don't ignite when batteries overheat or sustain damage. Since there’s no flammable liquid, SSBs won’t catch fire or emit harmful gases even if damaged. If something goes wrong, they stop working instead of exploding.

Longer Lifespan SSB’s degradation rate is very low and thus lasts much longer. It can easily handle thousands of charge-discharge cycles without losing power.

Environmental Benefits: SSB’s supports the sustainable development initiatives as they contain less poisonous chemicals and are simple to be recycle.

The Road to Commercialisation

Making SSBs commercially viable isn’t as easy as it seems. The production process is rather intricate; it requires high temperatures under high pressure, thereby greatly increasing energy use and costs.

Solid-state batteries are more expensive than lithium-ion ones as of now, but the prices should fall as production grows. Companies such as Stellantis, Factorial Energy, Hyundai, Toyota, and Volkswagen are making significant investments. In fact, Stellantis and Factorial have recently validated their EV-sized SSB cells, which achieve an energy density of 375 Wh/kg and feature rapid charging capability.

Demand for electric cars, consumer electronics, and energy storage is expected to drive the solid-state battery market worldwide from USD 380 million in 2025 to over USD 6.3 billion by 2032.

The Bottom Line

India’s unique mix of affordability concerns, growing electric vehicle (EV) demand, and infrastructure challenges makes it an ideal candidate for SSB adoption. The SSB technology effectively addresses key concerns, including range anxiety, safety, and long-term reliability, while also supporting national sustainability goals.

India should adopt a multi-pronged approach to capitalise on this remarkable opportunity: extend the PLI projects to include R&D in Solid-State Batteries, strengthen the domestic supply chain, enhance the grid to support fast-charging technologies, and invest more in public awareness campaigns to rebuild trust in EV technology.

Solid-state batteries are a leap, not simply the next stage. They might transform the way the planet stores and uses energy through improved safety, increased range, quicker charging, and a lower environmental footprint.

They might be the tipping point for India, shifting EVs from a hopeful choice to a default one.

-Anirudh Ramesh, Co Founder & CTO, iRasus Technologies

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