Automotive battery makers Exide Industries and Amara Raja Energy & Mobility posted contrasting results for the September quarter (Q2FY27). Exide’s standalone Ebitda rose nearly 54% year-on-year to ₹606 crore as revenue improved 20% to ₹5,026 crore. In contrast, Amara saw Ebitda fall 5% year-on-year to ₹386 crore—hurt by a sharp increase in input costs such as metal alloys and sulphuric acid—even as revenue grew 13% to ₹3,843 crore.
Exide’s Ebitda growth reflects strong market demand and its ability to pass on cost inflation. It hiked prices of four-wheelers by about 10% and two-wheelers by 5% during January-October. Q2FY27 gross margin rose 75 basis points (bps) year-on-year to 30.6%. Other costs dropped by over 170 basis points, though this came on a high base created when consumers deferred purchases ahead of last year’s GST rate cut, resulting in adverse operating leverage. Amara Raja managed only limited price hikes — 2% in Q2 after 3% in Q1 — causing its gross margin to shrink by about 300 basis points to 29.8%.
With the industry transitioning from lead-acid to lithium-ion technology, both companies are investing heavily to keep pace. Exide commenced commercial production at its lithium iron phosphate (LFP) battery plant and began recognising revenues in October. Meanwhile, its wholly owned subsidiary, Exide Energy Solutions Ltd (EESL), commissioned a 6 GWh lithium-ion cell facility in Q2. EESL manufactures and supplies advanced-chemistry cells, modules, and battery packs for both electric vehicles (EVs) and stationary energy storage systems.
India’s growing demand for electric two-wheelers (E2Ws) provides scope for growth. Monthly E2W sales have touched about 200,000 units this year, compared with 120,000 units last year, Exide said. So far in FY27, the company has invested ₹5,352 crore in EESL. “With EV inflection, Exide can gain significantly in the medium term if it executes well on Li-ion cell production, though it may take one or two years for yields to stabilise and to achieve the right scale,” said Nomura Global Markets Research.
Amara’s 10GWh battery energy storage solution plant is expected to start commercial production in Q4FY27. It also announced an investment of ₹2,320 crore to set up a 5 GWh LFP battery manufacturing facility and increase the capacity of its Li-ion factory. So far, it has invested ₹2,100 crore in total in the new energy business, which accounts for about 6% of consolidated revenue and encompasses lithium-ion technology, clean energy storage, and electric mobility solutions.