A science advisory body to the central government has released a list of 24 high-priority research projects to help India leapfrog into advanced electric vehicle (EV) technologies and address concerns about large-scale imports in the EV sector.

The principal scientific adviser (PSA) to the government on Tuesday released a report that lists what experts have described as research opportunities on next-generation batteries, novel materials and electric motors, among other key areas considered critical for sustainable EV expansion.

“This is a roadmap with research goals, indicative timelines and budgetary requirements that are intended to place India in a comfortable position in the electric vehicle domain,” said Ajay Sood, the PSA and chair of the Consultative Group on eMobility that pencilled the report.

Government vehicle registration data compiled by Clean Mobility Shift, a platform that documents India’s progress on electric mobility, show that 2.2 per cent of new four-wheelers, 3.3 per cent of buses, 5.3 per cent of two-wheelers and 53 per cent of three-wheelers in 2024 are EVs.

The Narendra Modi government has set ambitious EV expansion targets for India, aiming for 30 per cent of newly registered private cars, 40 per cent of new buses and 80 per cent of new two-wheelers and three-wheelers to be electric by 2030. EVs will help reduce dependence on fossil fuels and lower air pollution.

However, experts are concerned that India is currently unprepared for large-scale, sustainable EV expansion.

Many technologies needed for components of EVs are “outside the current capability” of domestic industries and require “persistent and pervasive imports in the EV sector”, a report from the Centre’s department of science and technology (DST) had cautioned earlier this year.

The consultative group’s e-mobility roadmap identifies research projects that the country will need to invest in and take up to achieve domestic capabilities in EV technologies and lower its levels of import dependence by the early 2030s.

The roadmap details 24 high-priority and 10 moderate-priority research projects, outlining gaps in technologies, project targets, deliverables, possible timelines, and even names of institutions with the requisite human resources that could take up them.

“These are experimental, exploratory projects — the risk of failure will be high but if one in 10 succeeds, it will have huge potential for wealth generation,” said Karthick Atmanathan, professor of practice at the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras, and member of the consultative group.

The roadmap estimates that all 34 projects would cost around ₹1,200 crore over the next three to five years.

The high-priority projects include technologies for new high-energy lithium-ion batteries, aluminium-ion batteries, fire suppressants for high-energy lithium-ion batteries, competitive manufacture of a material called graphene, magnetic reuse and recycling, and high-power density wireless charging, among others.

“Each of these projects could be viewed as a battle to fight to help India leapfrog in EV technologies,” said K. Balasubramanian, director of the Nonferrous Materials Technology Development Centre, Hyderabad, and a member of the consultative group,