Lithium-ion battery recycling and refurbishing firm LICO Materials on Thursday said it will receive a grant of ₹25 crore from the mines ministry under the incentive scheme for promotion of critical mineral recycling.
The ₹1,500-crore scheme, under the National Critical Mineral Mission, aims to develop domestic recycling capacity for critical minerals from lithium-ion batteries, e-waste, and industrial scrap, thereby reducing import dependence and supporting the clean energy and advanced manufacturing sectors.
“In a milestone for India’s clean energy supply chain, LICO Materials Private Limited, a battery circularity company building a fully integrated critical mineral recovery ecosystem, has received an eligibility grant from the Ministry of Mines under the Incentive Scheme for Promotion of Critical Mineral Recycling, a core pillar of the National Critical Mineral Mission (NCMM).
“The grant letter issued by the Jawaharlal Nehru Aluminium Research Development and Design Centre (JNARDDC), the government’s designated Project Management Agency, places LICO among 58 companies selected nationwide to build India’s domestic urban mining capability,” the company said in a statement.
Against a total committed investment of ₹240 crore, LICO qualifies for a 20 per cent capital expenditure (CapEx) subsidy and a multi-year Operational Expenditure (OpEx) subsidy linked to incremental commercial sales through FY 2030-31, making it one of the more substantial commitments within its category.
LICO was selected from among hundreds of applicants, reflecting the company’s deep technical expertise in battery chemistry and hydrometallurgy, as well as the rigour of its execution roadmap, the statement added.
“This recognition by the mines ministry and NCMM is the government’s validation that what we are building in Karnataka is what India needs,” Gaurav Dolwani, CEO of LICO Materials, said.
“We are not just recycling batteries but are producing battery-grade lithium, nickel and cobalt on Indian soil, from Indian waste batteries, for India’s cell and battery manufacturers. This is critical when global mineral supply chains are fracturing along geopolitical lines,” he said.
LICO proposes to extract critical materials from end-of-life batteries that India currently imports from China.
India’s entire battery-critical mineral supply chain runs through East Asia, which is the dominant global processor of lithium, cobalt, and graphite. As geopolitical tensions increasingly threaten the stability of global mineral supply chains, domestic recycling-led production is an industrial security imperative.