The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways announced the additional battery safety norms on batteries for electric vehicles that will come into effect from October 1, 2022. The amendments were suggested by an expert committee report after the recent spate of EV fires, which forced the government to step in and investigate the incidents. The amendments include additional safety requirements related to battery cells, BMS, onboard charger, battery pack design, thermal propagation due to internal cell short circuits leading to fire and more. The additional norms aim to make the batteries safer bringing a new baseline for battery makers to follow. Here's how the EV industry responded to the amendments.
Also Read: Government Announces Additional Battery Safety Norms From October 1
Dr Akshay Singhal, Founder and CEO of Log9 Materials
Speaking on the additional safety norms, Dr Akshay Singhal, Founder and CEO - Log9 Materials said, "Log9, in all earnest, welcomes the amended battery safety norms notified by the Government. With this, we can say that the Indian EV industry has come of age. The safety standards have been long overdue. With safety guidelines and regulations now conceptualised and designed as per the Indian operating conditions, we are confident that, in the future, every battery manufacturer and OEM will take full responsibility and go above and beyond to ensure that every single EV that reaches Indian roads is the safest of the lot. Inclusion of battery cells, on-board charger, battery pack design, and heat propagation due to internal cell short circuit leading to fire effectively encompasses all essential variables that could jeopardise a customer's safety, providing an additional push towards EV adoption."
Kalyan C Korimerla, MD & Co-Promoter, Etrio said, "As an EV OEM committed to increasing EV adoption and safety, we at Etrio welcome the recently-notified regulatory amendments and battery norms suggested by the Ministry of Road Transport, Government of India. The additional safety requirements for battery cells, battery packs, BMS, etc., when implemented, can greatly help the OEMs win the confidence of EV end-users by rolling out robust and safe vehicles. Safety standards such as these are extremely important in not only saving lives and minimizing fleet asset damage but also play a pivotal role in making the public feel safe in switching to electric vehicles."
Sohinder Gill, CEO of Hero Electric
Sohinder Gill, CEO - Hero Electric, said, "It's a well thought off policy and most of the points are relevant for the Indian EV ecosystem. The industry and the policymakers have now to sit down and agree on a framework of implementation in the short and medium term as some of the crucial points will take months of development and testing before starting mass production."
Amitabh Saran - Founder and CEO of Altigreen
Amitabh Saran, Founder and CEO - Altigreen, said, "All amendments that improve the quality, robustness and safety of a product are welcome. Care should be taken to ensure standards do not become so stringent (in a specific domain), that they curb all innovation in other unrelated domains. I would like to promote the concept of "star-rating" for tests undertaken by an OEM. The minimum criteria to get 1 star, should be to pass the type-approval test. After that, OEMs can score more stars based on the number of additional tests passed. The consumer is intelligent enough to pick a product that has more stars, especially if they are for a use case that beat matches his/her need."
Samrath Kochar, Founder & CEO of Trontek shared, “The announced norms are definitely stricter but important in the current scenario where safe EVs are a concern. These norms are adopted from the UN R100 Rev 2-Part-1 standards (A United Nations regulations requirement for electric vehicles). As the rules get strict, the testing criteria to pass them will be very difficult and only companies with good R&D and testing standards will be able to qualify. All the amendments are in the interest of end users and will only help in making way for India in becoming a leading EV market in the world.”
Earlier this year, a number of electric two-wheelers and battery packs were involved in fire incidents. This included products from PureEV, Okinawa, Ola Electric, Hero Electric, and Ather Energy, among others. The multiple incidents involving battery explosions also resulted in the loss of lives, further questioning the quality standards of EV batteries and cells. Taking cognizance of these incidents, MoRTH formed an expert committee that recommended the changes to the government. The manufacturers now have the task to meet the requirements specified that will necessitate upgrades and improvements on several levels. We expect battery makers to open up about these challenges and opportunities in the coming days.
Anant Nahata, MD - Exicom said, “These amendments will help pave the way for the Indian consumers to get safer and high-quality EVs. The battery safety recommendations by the expert committee will ensure that EV batteries operate safely under various conditions, including water ingress, over-voltage and other abnormal conditions. The thermal propagation test and pressure release vent will reduce the instances of thermal runaway. Overall this is a very positive move and we believe this will instil confidence in consumers and alleviate safety concerns.”
Madhumita Agrawal, CEO & Co-founder, Oben Electric, said, “This is a positive step by the Government towards considering customer safety as the topmost priority. The recently notified amendments and additions to AIS 156 and AIS 038 will bring about a very constructive development for the entire EV industry and ensure qualitative, safe, and strong products in the coming days for customers. We strongly believe that the wait of shifting to EV by the customer is worth the time and an optimistic move for the whole ecosystem as well. The framework now puts forth an appropriate structure for the EV Industry in India, just like automotive norms. As an e2W manufacturer, we welcome the Government’s move in initiating this process of setting standards for battery, cells, thermal propagation, and testing. This brings us closer to offering electric two-wheelers that deliver a continued and better riding experience than ICE. A more so reason for ensuring a smooth transition from conventional to electric vehicles."
