Ashok Leyland is set to establish a greenfield battery manufacturing facility in the SIPCOT Pillaipakkam Industrial Park, around 43 kilometres from Chennai, Tamil Nadu. The first phase of the project involves an investment of ₹4–5 billion (approximately €37–46 million) and is part of a broader ₹75-billion (€694 million) commitment announced last September.
The factory will produce battery packs using LFP cells imported from China’s CALB Group, which will act solely as a supplier without investing in the project. Production is targeted to begin in 2027, though a more precise timeline has not yet been confirmed.
Ashok Leyland plans to use the locally manufactured packs for its own electric vehicles and supply them to other EV manufacturers and energy storage companies. The company has pledged over ₹50 billion (€463 million) toward battery pack localisation initiatives over the next seven to ten years.
Through its subsidiary Switch Mobility, Ashok Leyland markets EVs including electric buses and light commercial vehicles. In the first nine months of FY2026, Switch Mobility sold 850 electric buses and around 1,200 electric light commercial vehicles, with a current order book of 1,350 EVs, according to MD and CEO Shenu Agarwal.
Dheeraj Hinduja, Executive Chairman of Ashok Leyland, said the new facility represents a significant step in the company’s electric mobility strategy, strengthening India’s domestic EV ecosystem and reaffirming its leadership in commercial electric vehicles.
