India's Battery Sector Prioritises Scrap Collection Amid Rising Demand

India's battery industry is entering a new phase of growth, fuelled by rising demand from electric vehicles, telecom infrastructure, renewable energy storage systems and conventional automotive applications.

While manufacturers continue to expand production capacity, industry experts say the next major challenge will be securing a reliable supply of end of life batteries, with battery scrap emerging as a critical resource for sustaining long term growth.

Once regarded as waste, used batteries are increasingly being recognised as a valuable secondary source of raw materials that can reduce import dependence, strengthen domestic supply chains and support India's circular economy objectives. As battery consumption continues to rise, industry observers believe access to recyclable batteries could become as important as recycling capacity itself.

Unlike conventional manufacturing industries, battery recycling relies on a highly fragmented collection network. End of life batteries are spread across millions of households, automobile workshops, dealers, fleet operators and industrial users, making collection and transportation a complex exercise. While much of this activity has historically been carried out through informal channels, stricter regulations are gradually shifting the sector towards organised recycling.

The recycling process involves battery collection, dismantling, smelting, acid treatment, plastic recycling, refining and alloying to produce lead ingots with purity exceeding 99.97 percent. Lead remains one of the world's most recyclable metals, with nearly 85 to 90 percent of India's domestic lead production sourced through recycling. More than 80 percent of the country's lead consumption is used in battery manufacturing.

India currently has around 672 registered lead recycling units across four regional clusters, with an installed recycling capacity of approximately 3.53 million tonnes per annum. The domestic lead acid battery market, valued at INR 42,150 crore in FY2025, is projected to reach INR 59,671 crore by FY2030, growing at a compound annual growth rate of 7.2 percent. Growth is expected to be driven by demand from the automotive sector, telecom infrastructure, renewable energy projects, inverters, UPS systems and data centres.

Despite the industry's significant installed capacity, the organised recycling sector continues to face a shortage of reliable domestic scrap supplies. The unorganised sector accounts for an estimated 24.4 percent of recycled lead ingot supply, while imports contribute another 14.4 percent. During FY2024, India imported around 153,500 tonnes of lead scrap worth approximately INR 2,486 crore, mainly from the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia. The value of lead scrap imports has grown at a compound annual growth rate of 11.6 percent since FY2019.

Industry experts say the continued reliance on imports reflects the gap between installed recycling capacity and efficient domestic scrap collection. However, tighter environmental regulations, traceability requirements and Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) norms are expected to improve organised collection systems and channel larger volumes towards compliant recyclers. As battery demand increases, competitive advantage is expected to depend not only on recycling infrastructure but also on the ability to build robust scrap sourcing and collection networks.

Organised recyclers such as Ardee Industries are strengthening their collection capabilities alongside expanding processing capacity as securing feedstock becomes increasingly critical. The company has received SEBI approval for its proposed initial public offering, comprising a fresh issue of INR 320 crore and an offer for sale of up to 37.65 million equity shares. It has built a sourcing network spanning more than 50 countries, reflecting the growing strategic importance of access to recyclable feedstock. The firm's pure lead and lead alloys using battery scrap, remelted lead ingots, lead blocks, lead scrap and lead master metal, with its battery and metal business contributing over 87 percent of total revenue in FY2025. With an estimated 1.5 percent share of India's recycled lead ingot market in FY2025, the company recycles end of life energy storage products and non ferrous scrap into materials used across the energy storage, electric mobility, automotive and chemical industries.

Industry participants increasingly view battery recycling as an issue of resource security rather than waste management alone. With global supply chains becoming more vulnerable to geopolitical uncertainties and commodity price volatility, recovering metals already available within the domestic economy offers significant economic and strategic benefits. Materials once considered waste are now emerging as critical resources for India's energy transition.

The sector is also attracting growing investor interest, supported by favourable regulations and successful public listings. CMR Green Technologies' INR 630.88 crore initial public offering, comprising an offer for sale of 3.29 crore shares, listed at INR 275 against its issue price band of INR 182 to INR 192, delivering a premium of more than 43 percent. Jain Resource Recycling also made a strong stock market debut in October 2025, with its INR 1,250 crore IPO listing at around INR 265 against an issue price of INR 232. Meanwhile, Gravita India continues to serve as one of the sector's benchmark listed companies, reflecting the long term growth potential of India's recycling industry.

As India accelerates the adoption of electric mobility, renewable energy and energy storage technologies, industry experts believe the next phase of the country's battery story will depend not only on manufacturing capacity but also on how effectively it collects, recovers and reuses valuable materials already circulating within the economy.