New Delhi, Oct. 23 -- India plans to double its non-fossil energy capacity of about 243GW over the next four years, a feat that will fuel unprecedented demand for battery energy storage systems (BESS) to offset renewable energy intermittency. A staggering number of lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) will be needed, most of which are still imported.

Also dependent on batteries is the transport sector: India aims to have electric vehicles (EVs) account for 30% of new vehicle sales by 2030, up from 7.7% in 2024. But, as battery demand grows, do we have adequate mechanisms in place to make well-informed decisions?

As one of the world's largest importers of processed lithium, our net-zero efforts are vulnerable to the global shift towards protecti...