DRDO’s Dare to Dream 3.0 gives validation and recognition from DRDO to the IIT Roorkee startup, Indi Energy.

On October 4, 2021, Mr. Rajnath Singh, the Defence Minister of India, launched the third iteration of DRDO’s “Dare to Dream”, a nationwide contest in honor of Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam. Dr. Kalam, a venerated scientist and the former president of India, oversaw the development of domestically produced guided missiles and the creation of SLV III, India’s first satellite launch vehicle, that was utilized to put the Rohini satellite into orbit, which enabled India to join the space club. He was an early advocate of the ideology of making India a self-sufficient nation. Through this post, we are taking this opportunity to share our proud feat with the readers.

What is the Dare to Dream contest?

Dare to Dream 3.0 has been spearheaded by the Indian Government and Defence Research and Development Organization for emerging technologies and startups to advance and modernize the nation’s defense and aerospace technologies. By identifying startups and providing them with a platform to showcase their excellence and innovation, the campaign hopes to further the vision of “Atma Nirbhar Bharat“.

How did the sodium ion battery fabricator, Indi Energy win DRDO’s Dare to Dream contest?

As a result of our development of sodium-ion battery technology, Indi Energy, headquartered in Uttarakhand, has been awarded first place in the startup category of the competition—a breakthrough sustainable energy solution derived primarily from abundant biomass within the country. With a wide range of applications such as solar and wind grid storage, electric vehicles, and inverter batteries, our sodium ion battery products aim to be an environmentally friendly alternative to lithium-ion batteries.

Not only will it significantly decrease the need for imports and reliance on lithium, cobalt, and nickel, but hard carbon, the anode component of our batteries, is produced straight from the crop residue. Upon the commercialization of Indi Energy’s sodium-ion batteries, we can effectively solve the problem of stubble burning that is endangering millions of Indian lives every year in October and November without any respite. It will also boost the socioeconomic potential of rural India by incentivizing farmers to sell their agricultural waste instead of burning it.

Indi Energy’s motivation for developing India’s first sustainable energy storage solution

Building a strong, self-sufficient India requires the collective desire and efforts of the entire nation, which Professor Yogesh Sharma, Indi Energy’s co-founder and Head of Research and Development, firmly agrees with. “I sincerely express my gratitude for the support from IIT Roorkee for Indi Energy in our quest to develop sodium-ion cell technology. It has been a blessing and an honor to win Dare to Dream 3.0 and prove that India will be leading the race for a sustainable energy storage technology.”

Furthermore, he shared that to make India self-reliant in the energy storage sector, Indi Energy aims to create a local supply chain for the components required for the production of sodium-ion batteries. Our team is hard at work to elucidate the sodium storage mechanism in Hard Carbon and to explore approaches that can enhance the already promising performance even more while lowering the cost further.

Winning the Defence Research and Development Organization’s Dare to Dream 3.0 is a phenomenal milestone. Indi Energy embodies the national spirit and exemplifies the company’s dedication to empowering energy independence through a renewable and viable invention. It will undoubtedly serve as a source of motivation for the young minds of our nation as we strive to establish and uphold the new global identity of India.