Over 130 companies have shown interest in the Indian space agency's lithium ion cell technology and the pre-application conference will be held on Tuesday, said a senior official.
"The response to our announcement to transfer the lithium ion cell technology is overwhelming. More than 130 companies have purchased the RFQ document. The pre-application conference will be held on Tuesday," S. Somanath, Director, Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC), told IANS.
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) in June announced its decision to transfer its own lithium ion cell technology to the Indian industry on a non-exclusive basis for usage in automobiles for Rs 1 crore.
The space agency had said the initiative will accelerate the development of the indigenous electric vehicle industry.
The VSSC, located in Kerala, will transfer the lithium ion cell technology to the successful Indian industries/start-ups on a non-exclusive basis to establish production facilities in the country that can produce cells of varying size, capacity, energy density and power density catering to the entire spectrum of power storage requirements, ISRO had said.
According to Somanath, the transfer of technology will start from transfer to documentation.
"Successful companies can come to VSSC and familiarise themselves about the battery technology. We do not have the manpower to depute to the technology buyer's place," Somanath said.
According to him, the lithium ion cell battery technology buyers can innovate further so address the market needs.
"Batch manufacturing of lithium ion cells is sufficient for ISRO's needs. Whereas in the case of mass production it is only the industry that can do it," he added.
Somanath said the ISRO makes lithium ion cell batteries of various sizes and power (1.5 ampere to 100 ampere) to power its rockets and satellites.
"ISRO will not get any royalty from the buyers of its lithium ion cell technology. Our idea is to enable the industry to develop," Somanath said.
He said ISRO for its use will source lithium ion batteries from Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (BHEL) as the technology has been transferred to the power equipment major.
Last month, ISRO issued the RFQ containing a brief description of the qualification process and technology transfer process, instructions to applicants, eligibility criteria, timelines and other details.
All queries or request for additional information concerning the RFQ will be addressed at the pre-application conference, the space agency had said.
ISRO also said that the "competent firm's security deposit will be adjusted against the technology transfer fee of Rs 1 crore. The security deposit (Rs 400,000) of unsuccessful applicants or withdrawn applications will be returned, without any interest".
The one-time technology transfer fee has to be paid within 30 days of the qualification date.
"Technology shall be transferred to all/any of the competent firms who qualify the eligibility criteria as specified in the RFQ. The required process documents shall be provided by ISRO at the time of signing of technology transfer agreement and payment of technology transfer fee," ISRO had said.
Presently, the lithium-ion battery is the most dominant battery system finding applications for a variety of societal needs including mobile phones, laptops, cameras and many other portable consumer gadgets apart from industrial applications and aerospace.
Recent advances in the battery technology have made it the preferred power source for electric and hybrid electric vehicles also.
Google sacks 28 employees involved in protests over Israel govt contract
Tech giant Google has laid off 28 employees who were involved in sit-in protests at its offices over a Google contract with the Israeli government.
'Made in India' tech like DPI can be transformative for the world: Bill Gates
Microsoft Co-founder and billionaire philanthropist Bill Gates on Saturday said that technologies like digital public infrastructure (DPI) that are created in India can be transformative for the world.
India is the next big playground for AI: Samsung VC, CEO JH Han
Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman, CEO and Head of the Device eXperience (DX) Division Jaong-Hee (JH) Han, who visited Samsung BKC at Jio World Plaza, Mumbai for the first time since the store's opening, said on Friday that India is the next big playground for artificial intelligence (AI).
ISRO's step towards realising Indian space shuttle 'Pushpak'
India progressed further in its attempt to realise a reusable launch vehicle (RLV)/ rocket named 'Pushpak' by successfully test landing RLV LEX-2 on Friday at the Aeronautical Test Range (ATR) in Karnataka's Chitradurga.
AI will be smarter than any single human by next year: Musk
Elon Musk who is currently locked in a battle with ChatGPT maker OpenAI said on Wednesday that artificial intelligence (AI) will probably be smarter than any single human by next year.
NASA’s Crew 7 targets March 12 to return to Earth
NASA’s Crew 7 astronauts onboard the International Space Station (ISS) are preparing to return to Earth, after a six-month stay in the orbiting lab, the US space agency has said.
Meta suffers mega outage as FB, Instagram, Messenger stop working for millions
In one of the worst outages for Meta in years, its entire family of apps -- Facebook, Instagram, Messenger and Threads -- went down for millions across the globe, including in India, as users were thrown out from their accounts.
Narendra Modi first PM to visit ISRO’s VSSC in 4 decades, meets Gaganyaan astronauts
Narendra Modi on Tuesday became the first Prime Minister to visit the Indian Space Research Organisation’s (ISRO) Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC) in four decades, where he met the four astronaut-designates of India's Gaganyaan Mission