Log9 Materials to manufacture LTO and LFP cells – a chat with Dr Akshay Singhal

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On 21 April 2022, Log9 Materials unveiled an indigenously developed cell manufacturing facility at its campus in Jakkuru, Bengaluru. Team EVreporter interacted with Dr Akshay Singhal, CEO – Log9 Materials, to discuss their cell manufacturing plans.

Log9 has been dabbling in multiple energy storage technologies. Which cell technology are you planning to roll out first, and when?

Log9 has been developing cell technologies grounds up ranging from Aluminum Fuel Cells to Ultracapacitors to High Power Lithium-ion cells which were announced on the 21st of April under the TiB brand name. TiB cell technology encompasses LTO and LFP cell technology designed for tropical climatic conditions. Under the TiB brand, Log9 will be commercialising indigenously developed and manufactured Lithium-ion cells in the Indian market within FY 23.

We are concentrating on the cylindrical form factor and tabless cell design. We aim to improve the energy density of LTO cells by 76% and LFP cells by 27% as compared to the cells available today.

At the same time, by concentrating on the right cell format, cell design and processing techniques, we intend to bring a more than a 60% reduction in the cost of an LTO cell and about 35% reduction in the cost of an LFP cell.

For your cell manufacturing line, what is the current production capacity per day (number of cells)?

The existing one is a small R&D facility for technology development on which the first Indian commercially viable lithium-ion cell technology has been developed. On our Day Zero (21 April), we announced the largest cell fabrication facility in India and South East Asia, which will be commissioned by Sep 2022 with a 50 MWh peak annual capacity.

What timeline have you set for mass manufacturing, and what scale of production are you targeting at full capacity?

We are sure that India would have a couple of hundred GWh of cell requirement locally by 2030. We expect to have about 5 GWh of production with our cell technology by FY 26 and scale it to over 40 GWh by 2030.

Tell us about your R&D efforts. How big is your R&D team, and what mix of skill sets do they have?

Log9 is a deep tech company with over 30% of its manpower directly engaged in R&D, apart from another 10% of team members providing direct support to our R&D efforts. Log9’s R&D efforts span material science, cell fabrication, electrode chemistry design, process chemistry, graphene scaleup, power electronics, and battery design among others.

Are you planning to use these cells for captive consumption (making your battery packs) or do you plan to sell your cells to the market as well?

Log9 TiB cells are being built for captive consumption. Log9 has developed advanced electronics for its RapidX batteries that harnesses the full potential of TiB cell and allow for fast charge technology and unleashing the full potential of TiB cells.

What is the target price per kWh you are trying to achieve for different battery/cell technologies you are working on?

Globally competitive.

Many leading names in the Indian EV space have associated with you for fast charging RapidX batteries. How many such vehicles are already deployed in different segments?

We have around 800+ vehicles deployed as a mix of 3W, 2W and 4W in the market, with 20-25 vehicles separately in various segments as pilot for new upcoming platforms.