The Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT), under the Department of Commerce, has prohibited the export of lithium-ion battery black mass to strengthen domestic recycling capacity and ensure greater recovery of critical minerals.
The DGFT amended the export policy for the item, classified under ITC (HS) Code 85491400, from ‘Free’ to ‘Prohibited’ with immediate effect and until further orders. The transitional arrangements under Para 1.05 of the Foreign Trade Policy (FTP), 2023, will apply.
ITC (HS) Code 85491400 covers waste and scrap of primary cells, primary batteries and electric accumulators, including spent cells, batteries and accumulators that are unsorted and do not contain lead, cadmium or mercury. The notification specifically identifies lithium-ion battery black mass under this classification.
Black mass is a powder-like material generated by shredding end-of-life lithium-ion batteries and battery manufacturing waste. It contains recoverable quantities of critical minerals, including lithium, cobalt, nickel and manganese.
These minerals are essential for electric mobility, advanced chemistry cell batteries, energy storage systems, electronics and renewable energy technologies. India remains substantially dependent on imports for several of these critical resources, making domestic recycling an important avenue for strengthening supply security.
According to the government, although India’s capacity to recycle battery waste and recover critical minerals has expanded significantly, it remains underutilised due to inadequate availability of feedstock. The export of domestically generated black mass diverts valuable secondary resources overseas, while some domestic recyclers have had to import the material to meet their requirements.
The export prohibition aims to ensure that black mass generated in India is processed and refined within the country. It is expected to improve feedstock availability for domestic recycling and refining facilities, enhance capacity utilisation and encourage fresh investments and employment in the sector.
The measure is also expected to increase the domestic recovery of lithium, cobalt, nickel and other critical minerals, reduce import dependence and lower the associated foreign exchange outgo.
By retaining these resources within the country, the government aims to strengthen supply chains for battery manufacturing, electric vehicles, energy storage and clean-energy technologies, in line with the vision of Aatmanirbhar Bharat.
The move is also expected to promote the circular economy and ‘urban mining’ by recovering valuable minerals from discarded batteries, reducing dependence on primary mining and supporting environmentally sound recycling of hazardous battery waste in accordance with applicable environmental regulations.
The decision complements the government’s initiatives under the National Critical Mineral Mission (NCMM), including the Rs 1,500-crore incentive scheme approved by the Union Cabinet in September 2025 to develop recycling capacity for the separation and production of critical minerals from secondary sources such as battery waste and electronic waste.
Retaining black mass within India is expected to ensure adequate domestic feedstock for recycling facilities being developed under the scheme.
The measure is also in line with steps taken by several major economies to retain critical mineral-bearing battery waste and black mass for domestic processing and resource recovery.
Published: Wednesday, 11 November 2026 | 8:08 PM IST