The government signalled its continued intent to reduce import dependence for the supply of refined minerals Wednesday, with the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) banning the export of battery waste, scrap, and lithium-ion battery black mass with immediate effect.
Black mass is the powdery material obtained by shredding discarded lithium-ion batteries which contains lithium, cobalt, nickel, manganese, and graphite. It is essential for electric vehicle batteries, energy storage systems, electronics, and renewable energy technologies.
India’s electrical and electronic waste imports stood at $553.19 mn in 2025-26, up nearly 29% from $430.32 mn the previous year. Import of lithium, critical for the clean-energy supply chain, reached $46.91 mn from $35.71 mn in the same period.
India’s e-waste exports, while small at $9.57 mn, jumped by 97% in 2025-26 from $4.84 million in 2024-25.
The export ban will enhance access to vital raw materials for domestic recyclers and encourage investments in recycling infrastructure, a DGFT official told The New Indian Express.
The announcement comes days after the Cabinet announced the Capex Support Scheme with an outlay of Rs 2,814 crore to boost domestic critical mineral processing. It is also in tandem with the government's Rs 1,500 crore incentive scheme for critical mineral recycling, approved by the Cabinet in September 2025.
"At present, a substantial opportunity is lost when black mass extracted from end-of-life batteries is exported for refining and the processed materials are subsequently imported back into the country,” said Nitin Gupta, CEO and co-founder of e-waste management company Attero. “This not only weakens domestic value addition but also exposes India to geopolitical risks and potential supply disruptions.” Gupta said the measure will help improve domestic recyclers’ capacity utilisation and allow them to scale up operations.
The government’s decision will help India build a more resilient domestic supply chain, added Uditanshu Agarwal, director at Staunch Electronics, a manufacturer of mobile batteries.