Mumbai: Reliance New Energy Solar Ltd (RNESL), a wholly owned subsidiary of Reliance Industries Ltd, has signed definitive agreements to acquire 100 per cent shareholding in Faradion Limited for an enterprise value of GBP 100 million. In addition, RNESL will also invest GBP 25 million as growth capital to accelerate commercial roll out.

Speaking about the acquisition, Mukesh Ambani, Chairman of Reliance Industries, said: “We welcome Faradion and its experienced team to the Reliance family. This will further strengthen and build upon our ambition to create one of the most advanced and integrated new energy ecosystems and put India at the forefront of leading battery technologies.”

“The sodium-ion technology developed by Faradion provides a globally leading energy storage and battery solution which is safe, sustainable, provides high energy density and is significantly cost competitive. In addition, it has wide use applications from mobility to grid scale storage and back-up power.”

James Quinn, CEO of Faradion, also commented: “Faradion has been one of the first to champion sodium-ion battery technology. Reliance is the perfect partner for supporting Faradion’s growth in the rapidly expanding Indian market and to jointly speed up the transformation of the global energy market. Becoming part of the Reliance group validates the incredible work our team has done in advancing sodium-ion technology. Together with Reliance, Faradion can bring British innovation to India and globally, as the world increasingly looks beyond lithium. We look forward to being part of India’s net zero mission.”

Dr Chris Wright, Chairman and Co-Founder Faradion, said, “Dr Jerry Barker, AshwinKumaraswamy and I founded Faradion in 2010 to develop sodium-ion technology and bring it to market, with funds from Mercia Asset Management. This deal with Reliance firmly establishes Faradion’s sodium-ion batteries as an integral part of the global value chain for cheaper, cleaner, more sustainable energy for decades to come.” /BI/