India's ambitious plans to build a domestic lithium-ion battery manufacturing ecosystem are facing significant headwinds due to persistent visa hurdles for essential Chinese technical personnel. According to industry sources, the slow and restrictive visa renewal process is delaying the construction and commissioning of critical battery plants for electric vehicles (EVs) and grid-scale energy storage.
The Core of the Problem: Short-Term Visas and Long Delays
Despite a recent thaw in bilateral relations, Chinese technicians crucial for setting up advanced battery manufacturing facilities are currently granted business visas for only six months. Once this period expires, they are required to return to China and wait for several months before they can apply for re-entry. This cycle creates substantial gaps in their on-ground availability, directly pushing out project timelines.
This situation persists even though the Ministry of Home Affairs norms allow for business visas with multiple entry to be granted for up to five years. The current restrictive practice is a legacy of the tensions following the 2020 Galwan clashes, after which India halted visas for Chinese nationals. Short-term visas were resumed only in August 2024 specifically to support projects under the government's Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) schemes.
"Six months is not adequate for completing and commissioning large-scale battery projects," stated Debmalya Sen, President of the India Energy Storage Alliance (IESA). He emphasized that forcing key personnel to leave the country creates an unnecessary obstacle that hampers progress.
Why Chinese Technicians Are Currently Indispensable
The reliance on Chinese expertise is not by choice but by necessity, industry experts explain. China holds global leadership in EV and battery technology, along with control over raw material supplies. While partial alternatives exist in Europe, Japan, and Taiwan, a complete, ready-made substitute is not available for India's rapid scale-up.
Furthermore, the machinery imported for these plants often comes with stringent warranty clauses that lapse if the equipment is handled by local or non-authorised technicians. The affected personnel are typically ground-level commissioning engineers responsible for construction, erection, and fine-tuning of complex production lines. Their absence forces companies to resort to technical assistance via video conferencing, which is no substitute for hands-on, physical inspection and problem-solving.
"The government is aware of these challenges and is working on expediting visa applications," revealed a second source familiar with the matter. However, the current renewal process still takes approximately six weeks.
Broader Impact on India's Clean Energy Transition
These delays have a cascading effect on India's strategic energy goals. The government is considering extending the timelines for the ₹18,100-crore PLI scheme for Advanced Chemistry Cell (ACC) batteries due to slow progress. Beneficiaries like Reliance Industries, Ola Electric, and Rajesh Exports, who were allocated a total of 40 GWh of manufacturing capacity, have seen excruciatingly slow progress on their plants.
The stakes are enormous. India sold over 2 million electric vehicles between January and November 2025 alone, as per Vahan data. A report by RMI and India Foundation in November 2025 projected that this shift will drive annual EV battery demand to a staggering 1,080 gigawatt-hours by 2050, a 40-fold increase from current projections.
The bottleneck also threatens to impact the allied battery recycling industry in the long term. Nitin Gupta, CEO of recycler Attero, noted that while his company uses in-house technology, delays in setting up large gigafactories will reduce the future supply of end-of-life batteries, affecting long-term growth prospects for the entire sector.
The Ministry of External Affairs, in a briefing on 27 November by spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal, maintained that the visa regime for Chinese business travelers is "fully functional." However, on the ground, the disconnect between policy and practical necessity is slowing down India's grand battery plans, underscoring the need for a streamlined, project-focused approach to visa approvals for critical technical staff.
