Roorkee (The Hawk): Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee’s (IIT Roorkee) start-up Indi Energy, which specializes in manufacturing Sodium-Ion batteries, has won the National Startup Awards 2022 in ‘Energy Storage’ category.
The award, presented recently in Delhi, recognizes and celebrates the most promising and innovative startups in India. In recognition of the achievement, the certificate of commendation was presented by Sh. Piyush Goyal ji, Minister of Commerce and Industries, Government of India.
Addressing participants during the awards ceremony, Shri. Piyush Goyal, Minister of Commerce and Industries, Government of India, said, “India is now the third largest ecosystem for start-ups in the world. And this dream would not have been possible without the launch of Digital India. I congratulate each of you for taking that one step towards becoming a developed nation.”
The third edition of the awards was aimed at honoring businesses that offer innovative and ground-breaking solutions that encourage the nation’s sustainable economic development and provide large-scale employment opportunities.
Congratulating the whole Indi energy team led by Prof. Yogesh Sharma, IIT Roorkee, on this achievement, Prof. K.K. Pant, Director, IIT Roorkee, said, “The National Startup Award 2022 is among the most prestigious awards in Indian start-up ecosystem. IIT Roorkee is committed to providing hand-holding support to start-ups founded by IITR faculty and students. Further, the ecosystem is continuously being developed to nurture new ideas and innovation in science and technology.”
The Institute had recently launched a scheme for supporting faculty-led start-ups. It supports the commercialization of technologies developed by IIT Roorkee faculty. This support is provided for prototyping, pilot testing, and marketing expenses. It is noteworthy that IIT Roorkee also has Faculty Entrepreneurship Policy in place.
IIT Roorkee is supporting 130+ startups through TIDES (Technology Incubation and Entrepreneurship Development Society) and I-Hub Divyasampark. Both units facilitate the incubation of new enterprises with innovative technologies by admitting them to their Incubation Centre and providing physical, technical, financial, and networking support and services. Apart from this, IIT Roorkee has various schemes to support startups incubated by the faculties, students and research scholars of the institute.
Speaking about receiving the award, Prof. Yogesh Kumar Sharma, Co-Founder at Indi Energy, said, "We are proud to be leading the way in the development of sodium-ion batteries in India. This award is a step towards our goal of making India’s energy independent and self-reliant in sustainable energy storage solutions. We are grateful to the Government of India for recognizing our efforts and IIT Roorkee for extensive support.”
Akash Soni, Co-Founder and CEO of Indi Energy said, "We are thrilled for winning the National Startup Awards 2022. This award is a true recognition of our team's hard work, dedication, and passion for creating sustainable and innovative energy solutions for India and the world."
Indi Energy's sodium-ion batteries are known for their high energy density, low cost, and high safety, making them a viable alternative to traditional lithium-ion batteries. The company's mission is to provide affordable and reliable energy storage solutions for a wide range of applications, including electric vehicles, grid storage, and portable electronics. Indi Energy is trying to empower the nation with an Indigenously developed battery including its components to make India self-reliant. As Indi Energy ramps up the production of its innovative sodium-ion batteries, it will make India a front-runner in the clean energy storage sector. A sustainable alternative to lithium-ion batteries and lead-acid batteries, Indi Energy’s sodium-ion batteries are powered by hard carbon – the anode material, which is derived primarily from biomass.