Key Takeaways
- Pakistan is set to launch a $2.25 billion lithium-ion battery manufacturing project in Rawalpindi.
- The project involves a factory owned by Margalla Heavy Industries Limited and is expected to begin production within six to eight months.
- The facility will manufacture lithium-ion cells with an initial capacity of 200 to 300 megawatts.
Pakistan is preparing to launch a $2.25 billion lithium-ion battery manufacturing project in Rawalpindi, with a factory owned by the military-run Margalla Heavy Industries Limited (MHIL) expected to begin production within six to eight months of government approval.
According to Hamad Ali Mansoor, chief executive of the Engineering Development Board (EDB), the project involves Chinese manufacturers and a local private sector investor, with construction and equipment installation already completed.
The proposed factory is located at Heavy Industries Taxila in Rawalpindi district, where MHIL manufactures defense equipment and other products, including unmanned drones, electric vehicle buses, two-wheelers, and battery energy storage systems.
The project was signed in July with a Chinese company that Mansoor described as one of China’s leading manufacturers, alongside a local investor.
The factory will manufacture lithium-ion cells, with an initial production capacity of 200 to 300 megawatts before gradually reaching its planned annual capacity of more than 1,000 megawatts.
Pakistan is seeking to build local battery manufacturing capacity as demand for energy storage and electric vehicles rises. The EDB estimates that demand for battery energy storage systems could reach 100,000 megawatts by June 2030, depending on economic growth.
Mansoor said the factory would manufacture lithium-ion cells, with an initial production capacity of 200 to 300 megawatts before gradually reaching its planned annual capacity of more than 1,000 megawatts.
The projected requirement includes households, commercial buildings, industrial facilities, and electric vehicles, ranging from two-wheelers to buses and trucks.
Pakistan plans four to five gigafactories, each costing approximately $1 billion to $1.25 billion, to meet the country’s projected demand.
The government has prepared a lithium battery manufacturing policy that was submitted to the Ministry of Industries in March and is awaiting approval.
The plan envisages four major factories, with three in Punjab’s Lahore, Faisalabad, and Rawalpindi divisions and another in Karachi.
The proposed policy would require battery manufacturers to export a specified share of their production, although Mansoor declined to disclose the target before the policy is approved.
The framework incorporates international safety and performance standards.
