June 1, 2023: Gravita India said on May 26 it had expanded lead battery recycling capacity at its Chittoor plant from 26,440 metric tonnes a year to 64,640 MTPA.
The increase takes the group’s overall recycling capacity to more than 278,000 MTPA — putting Gravita on course to hit its overall target of 425,000 MTPA by fiscal 2026.
Gravita invested around Rs21 crore ($2.4 million) in the Chittoor expansion project.
Expanding recycling capacity means Gravita is poised to manage an expected surge in demand for recycling, as manufacturers and importers of new batteries respond to extended producer responsibility requirements under Indian battery waste management regulations introduced in 2022.
The regulations are also designed to stamp out unregulated/informal battery recycling.
Meanwhile, Chittoor has a range of contracts in place to take battery scrap from major telecoms players, OEMs and the auto sector originating from across India.
Chittoor’s proximity to the port of Chennai, about 150km to the east, will help Gravita strengthen its presence in the southern Indian and southeast Asian markets, the company said.
Separately, Gravita said on May 24 its Tanzania subsidiary had started commercial production and recycling of waste rubber. Pyrolysis oil generated during the process would be used as an alternative source of energy to support its lead and aluminium recycling.
In May 2022, Gravita unveiled similar plans for a waste rubber operation at its plant in Ghana.