From Copper Foil to Cathodes: The Technologies Behind India's New Electronics Component Factories Category: Science and Technology

In news

• On 6 November 2026, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) approved 12 more projects under the Electronics Components Manufacturing Scheme (ECMS):
  • Investment: ₹7,503 crore
  • Expected production: ₹39,045 crore
  • Direct jobs: 7,127
  • Spread: seven States
• This round includes the first approvals under ECMS for cathode active material, copper foil and specialty ceramics.
• It also includes India's first commercial cathode material plant.
• On the same day, the Semicon 2.0 application portal under the India Semiconductor Mission was launched.

The electronics value chain: where India stands

Stage	Examples	India's position
Design	Chip and circuit design	Strong talent; most intellectual property is held by foreign firms
Materials	Copper foil, cathode and anode powders, ceramics, films	Largely imported. Today's approvals target this gap
Components	Circuit boards, relays, capacitors, heat sinks	Partly imported
Sub-assemblies	Camera modules, battery packs, displays	Growing
Final assembly	Phones, laptops, televisions	Strong: India is the world's second-largest mobile phone maker

India makes most of its phones, but much of the value inside them still comes from imported materials and parts. This round moves support upstream.

The technologies, explained

1. Cathode active material (Vidyuta Materials)

• What: the positive electrode material of a lithium-ion cell. Common types:
  • NMC (nickel-manganese-cobalt)
  • LFP (lithium iron phosphate)
• How it works: lithium ions leave the cathode during charging and return during discharge.
• Why it matters:
  • It decides a battery's energy, range, safety and life.
  • It is the costliest part of a cell.
  • China controls most of the world's supply.
• Link: electric vehicles, battery energy storage for solar power, and phones.

2. Anode material (TACC Limited)

• What: the negative electrode material, mostly graphite (natural or synthetic).
• How it works: it stores lithium ions while the battery charges.
• Why it matters:
  • Graphite is a critical mineral.
  • Battery-grade graphite processing is concentrated in China.
  • Local supply cuts this risk.

3. Copper foil (Indo Asia Copper)

• What: very thin copper sheet, made by electro-deposition (copper is plated onto a rotating drum and peeled off).
• Two uses:
  • In batteries: it is the current collector on the anode side. Aluminium foil does this job on the cathode side.
  • In circuit boards: it is pressed onto an insulating sheet to form a copper-clad laminate. Its surface is then etched into circuit tracks.
• Why it matters: both batteries and circuit boards depend on it. The thinner the foil, the lighter the battery.

4. Multi-layer printed circuit boards (NeST ICELR)

• What: boards with several layers of copper circuits stacked and bonded together. The layers are connected by tiny drilled holes called vias.
• Why it matters: modern phones, cars, telecom equipment and servers need dense wiring in small spaces. Most advanced boards are imported today.

5. Specialty ceramics (Voltix Semicon)

• What: engineered ceramics such as alumina and aluminium nitride.
• Special property: they block electricity but conduct heat.
• Use: as substrates (base plates) in power modules, chip packaging and sensors.
• Why it matters: the inverters of electric vehicles and solar plants run hot. Ceramics keep these power devices cool and insulated.

6. Polypropylene film (Enerfolie)

• What: an ultra-thin, capacitor-grade plastic film.
• Use: it is the insulating layer (dielectric) in film capacitors.
• Why it matters: these capacitors are used in solar inverters, electric vehicle drives, railways and power grids. They need high voltage tolerance and long life.

Other approvals

• Relays (TDConnex): electrically operated switches. Used in vehicles, appliances and industrial controls.
• Heat sinks (Modern Automotives): metal fins that draw heat away from processors and power parts.
• Camera rims (Surface Modification Technologies): precision metal parts that hold smartphone camera lenses.
• Capital goods: precision moulds and tooling (TDConnex), power and control systems (Rockwell Automation India), and factory automation and robotics (Wipro Pari).

Why upstream manufacturing matters

• Supply chain security: the world saw shortages of chips and rare earth magnets when supply was disrupted. India's battery and electronics plans depend on materials from a few countries.
• Value addition: India assembles at scale but captures low value. Materials and components carry higher margins.
• Energy transition: the cathode, anode and copper foil approvals feed India's advanced chemistry cell batteries and battery energy storage plans.
• Strategic sectors: defence, telecom and space electronics need trusted domestic parts.
• Jobs and MSMEs: about half of the approved units under ECMS are MSMEs.

Challenges

• Technology access: many processes are protected by patents. Foreign partners may be reluctant to share know-how.
• Raw materials: lithium, nickel, cobalt and graphite are still largely imported.
• Scale and cost: Chinese plants are huge and cheap. Indian units must reach scale to compete.
• Purity and quality: battery and chip materials need extremely high purity. Customers test and approve suppliers slowly.
• Environment: chemical processing needs safe handling of solvents, acids and waste.
• Skills: a shortage of materials scientists and process engineers.

ECMS at a glance

Item	Detail
Ministry	Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology
Notified	April 2025
Original outlay	₹22,919 crore
Approvals so far	118 projects, 34 products, 16 States
Investment approved	₹77,051 crore (target was ₹59,350 crore)
Expected production	₹5.73 lakh crore (target was ₹4.56 lakh crore)
Direct jobs	81,755 (target was 91,600)
Support	Incentives linked to turnover and capital expenditure

Semicon 2.0 in brief

• Outlay: ₹1,27,500 crore, approved by the Union Cabinet for the second phase of the India Semiconductor Mission.
• Six pillars:
  1. chip design
  2. machines and materials
  3. additional fabrication plants
  4. assembly and testing expansion
  5. research and development
  6. talent
• Open for applications now: pillars 2, 3 and 4.
• Target: attract at least three major chip-equipment makers and five chemical and gas companies.
• Phase 1: 12 semiconductor projects worth over ₹1.64 lakh crore were approved. Five had begun commercial production by October 2026.

Static connect

• Lithium-ion cell parts: cathode (+), anode (−), separator (stops short circuits), electrolyte (carries ions), and current collectors (aluminium on the cathode side, copper on the anode side).
• Cathode chemistries: LFP is cheaper, safer and cobalt-free. NMC stores more energy per kilogram.
• Related schemes:
  • PLI for Large Scale Electronics Manufacturing (2020)
  • SPECS (Scheme for Promotion of Manufacturing of Electronic Components and Semiconductors, 2020)
  • PLI for Advanced Chemistry Cell batteries (2021)
  • Semicon India Programme (2021, ₹76,000 crore)
• India Semiconductor Mission: a specialised division under the Digital India Corporation, MeitY.
• Critical minerals: see the 5 November article on the Critical Mineral Processing Scheme.

Exam relevance: UPSC Prelims and GS-3 (Science and Technology, Indigenisation of technology, Industrial policy); TGPSC, APPSC (Science and Technology, Indian economy).