Rahul Somvanshi
India’s battery-storage industry could reduce its reliance on imported systems by building domestic supply chains for sodium-ion, vanadium redox flow, zinc-based and iron-based technologies, according to a new survey by the NetZero Energy Transition Association, or NETRA. The finding is a forecast from industry respondents—not a confirmed outcome—and the timeline reported alongside it is inconsistent.
The survey says roughly 89% to 91% of India’s present battery-storage systems and lithium-ion battery requirements are imported. It found that 61% of respondents saw domestic innovation and manufacturing in non-lithium technologies as a way to reduce that exposure. About 54% expected imports’ share to fall to 50%–52% with commercial deployment and targeted investment.
A projection, not a production result
The accompanying report describes that reduction in two different timeframes: its headline refers to 2035, while its body says respondents expect it by 2032. Until NETRA releases the full survey methodology and results, neither date should be treated as a government forecast or a guaranteed industrial target.
The attraction of multiple battery chemistries is practical. Lithium-ion cells are widely deployed, but different technologies can suit different tasks. Vanadium redox flow batteries are aimed at long-duration storage and grid flexibility. Sodium-ion, zinc-based and iron-based systems could offer alternative material supply chains. Whether they can displace imports at scale will depend on manufacturing capacity, performance, safety, financing, procurement and recycling—not simply on laboratory progress.
The report says India’s cumulative battery energy-storage capacity could rise from 6.3GWh to 302GWh between FY26 and FY32. That is a large expansion, but it should be read as an industry estimate. Deployment needs are also different from cell-manufacturing capability: an India-based pack assembler can still depend on imported cells, materials or equipment.
Will non-lithium batteries cut India’s storage imports in half? They may contribute, but the available evidence supports only a survey-based expectation. The reported 50%–52% import share is not a measured result, and the report has not yet supplied enough public detail to assess the assumptions behind it.
NETRA says its report will be released at the Beyond Lithium Summit in New Delhi on October 24. The useful test will be whether it publishes chemistry-specific costs, operating lives, domestic-content definitions and a clear import baseline. Those details will show whether “beyond lithium” is becoming a scalable industrial strategy rather than an ambition.
India’s energy-security case for diversified storage is real. But a credible path requires transparent data on what is manufactured domestically, which inputs remain imported and how each technology performs on the grid.
