Amara Raja Advanced Cell Technologies has commissioned a Customer Qualification Plant at its Giga Corridor in Telangana, a step towards commercial-scale lithium-ion cell manufacturing. The company said the facility will supply cells for customer validation ahead of high-volume production. The CQP has an initial capacity of 60 megawatt-hour (MWh) and a workforce of more than 100 employees, and represents an investment of Rs five billion (bn) within the company's Phase I outlay of more than Rs 15 bn under the Rs 95 bn Giga Corridor programme. The plant will produce lithium-ion cells that customers can test and validate, with supply for validation expected to begin in August 2026. Designed to be reconfigurable, the CQP will produce cylindrical and prismatic cell formats across multiple chemistries, enabling customer programmes and process validation before transfer to high-volume production. The layout mirrors commercial manufacturing to allow process refinement on scales that emulate future lines. Amara Raja said the intermediate step is intended to accelerate industrialisation of new cell technologies and reduce execution risk as production scales. The approach is expected to smooth the learning curve ahead of the company's first two gigawatt-hour (GWh) commercial cell manufacturing facility, Giga 1, which is scheduled to commence production next year. Together with the advanced research and engineering centre, ePositive Energy Labs, the CQP brings the company close to completing the first phase of its Giga Corridor investment. The chief minister of Telangana noted that the state is committed to building manufacturing capabilities and supporting investments that generate employment and foster innovation. Company leadership described the CQP as a step towards creating a trusted energy ecosystem and enhancing India's ability to develop and validate advanced battery technologies, framing the facility as part of efforts to strengthen the domestic battery manufacturing value chain.