The Union Cabinet approved a ₹2,814 crore capital-support scheme on November 4 to develop domestic lithium and nickel processing facilities over five years, from 2026-27 to 2030-31.
The official announcement provides for a subsidy of 30% of eligible investment. The programme envisages two lithium plants with minimum capacity of 30 kilotonnes each and two nickel plants of at least 50 kilotonnes each.
Support is capped at ₹500 crore per lithium beneficiary and ₹900 crore per nickel beneficiary. Applicants must first pass technical assessment, then compete on the amount of capital support requested. Payments will be divided into three milestone-linked tranches.
The facilities would convert ores or intermediate materials into high-purity compounds. Cobalt is expected as a by-product of nickel processing.
The approval creates a funding framework. It does not identify selected operators or confirm that any of the four plants has started production.
Archive illustration of the Vale Copper Cliff nickel refinery in Sudbury, Canada, photographed in 2016; not one of the proposed Indian plants. Photo: Vale Copper Cliff Nickel Refinery Smoke Stacks - Sudbury, Ontario by Tony Webster, CC BY-SA 2.0. Display may be resized or cropped.
