GreenergyDaily

Aug. 16, 2025

A growing wave of Indian businesses is seeking partnerships with Chinese companies for technology transfers, a quiet effort that’s expected to see a boost as President Donald Trump’s tariff barrage nudges the longstanding Asian rivals closer.

The country’s biggest conglomerates, from the Adani Group to Reliance Industries Ltd. and JSW Group, have been pursuing under-the-radar deals with Chinese firms that have the most mature and cost-efficient technology in renewable sectors like electric vehicles and lithium-ion cells.

Executives have taken pains to keep these tieups low profile so far because of Beijing’s stance against sharing technology to potential manufacturing rivals, and New Delhi’s refusal to accept large-scale investment from Chinese companies, according to people familiar with the matter.

Yet with the bilateral relationship showing signs of thawing, businesses are hoping that private sector partnerships will now be allowed to flourish, the people said, asking not to be identified for fear of political reprisal.

Recent months have seen Indian tycoon Gautam Adani make at least one trip to China, visiting companies like Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. (CATL), the world’s biggest battery maker, among others.

He’s also personally leading talks with EV giant BYD Co., for a battery manufacturing tieup, Bloomberg News reported earlier this month. The Adani Group denied that it’s exploring any collaboration with BYD.

Fellow billionaire Sajjan Jindal’s JSW has already clinched a pact for sourcing technology and components from Chery Automobile Co. for its work-in-progress new-energy vehicles, Bloomberg News reported in July.

Reliance, the refining-to-retail conglomerate run by Asia’s wealthiest man Mukesh Ambani, is also quietly considering taking stakes in Chinese-origin battery-tech firms as it pushes into building fuel cells and batteries — as opposed to its more visible acquisitions in the US and Europe, said a person familiar with the matter. The company did not respond to a request for comment.