On 9 December 2025, India Foundation (IF) and Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) co-hosted the first Battery Circularity Forum at the India Habitat Centre, New Delhi, and launched a joint report on “Charting a Circular Battery Future in India.” The report was launched by Amb. Ruchira Kamboj, Former Permanent Representative of India to the United Nations in New York and Member of the Governing Council, IF; Mr. Shaurya Doval, Managing Director of Zeus Caps and Member of the Governing Council, IF; and Dr. Jon Creyts, CEO of RMI, along with the authors – Mr. Shashvat Singh, Senior Research Fellow, IF; Ms. Akshima Ghate, Managing Director, RMI India; and Ms. Marie McNamara, Manager, RMI
The report highlights that battery circularity presents a Rs. 75,000 crore opportunity and emphasises how India can step up reuse, repurposing and recycling to achieve a circular battery system. In her Opening Address, Amb. Kamboj discussed the importance of resilience in the critical mineral supply chain and the role circularity can play. She congratulated the RMI and IF teams on the report’s release. Ms. McNamara presented key insights from the report. She stressed that batteries are projected to increase fortyfold by 2050, reaching an estimated 1,000-gigawatt hours. With this rising demand, there is an opportunity to build a system that prioritises circularity from the start, aiming that by 2050, India meets its 40% of battery demand through recycled batteries while ensuring supply chain resilience. She also discussed various initiatives by the Government of India to promote battery circularity and India’s potential role in the battery value chain. Mr. Doval emphasised that battery circularity is not only an environmental necessity but also an economic and strategic one, highlighting the importance of technological competitiveness. Dr. Creyts stated that the launch serves as a bridge between policy and technology, industrial needs and research capabilities, and between innovation and implementation. He outlined different areas India needs to focus on to become an effective player in the battery value chain.
Later, the session transitioned into a roundtable discussion moderated by Ms. Ghate, where industry leaders, policymakers and technical experts exchanged perspectives on advancing India’s battery circularity ecosystem and strengthening the country’s position in the global battery value chain. They discussed the challenges and opportunities in battery circularity.
The forum underscored India’s potential to lead in battery circularity through coordinated policy, industry innovation and strategic investments across the value chain. Additionally, IF and RMI signed an MoU to deepen collaboration on research, policy dialogue and capacity-building initiatives to support India’s battery circularity and clean energy transition.
