Dean's Lecture: Vikram Handa

In the urgent quest to address the climate crisis and build a greener economy, decarbonization has emerged as a critical priority for businesses and governments alike. As the founder of Epsilon Group, Mr. Vikram Handa, E01, has long been at the forefront of these efforts, promoting cleaner technologies and shaping the carbon black and battery materials sectors. In this lecture, Mr. Handa will share his inspiring journey of pioneering an industrial conglomerate dedicated to sustainability and explore how innovation at the intersection of entrepreneurship and the environment can drive meaningful change in our world.

Mr. Vikram Handa is an innovator, a solution-oriented entrepreneur, and a global leader in the chemical and energy transition industry. In 2010, he founded Epsilon Group, a leading industrial conglomerate aimed at driving the global carbon black and battery materials industry. With a vision to decarbonize economies and support cleaner technologies, the group has carved a niche for itself through its subsidiaries, Epsilon Carbon and Epsilon Advanced Materials. 

Under his leadership, a world-class, fully integrated 320,000 TPA specialty carbon facility was commissioned in 2017 in Bellary, Karnataka. The journey continued with their entry into the Carbon Black business, boasting a capacity of 115,000 TPA. This Integrated Carbon Complex has a 10% lower carbon footprint compared to its global peers and is a complete zero water discharge facility. With fast-paced expansion plans for Carbon Black, Epsilon Carbon aims to become India’s third-largest Carbon Black producer with a capacity of 215,000 TPA. The next decade of growth in India for the company will come through the recent investment announcement of US$ 1.1 Billion for an integrated carbon plant in Jharsuguda, Odisha.

In 2018, Mr. Handa founded Epsilon Advanced Materials Pvt. Ltd. (EAMPL) to mark the company's entry as an upcoming global supplier of sustainable battery materials for EVs, ESS, and the electronics industry. The company envisions vertically integrated manufacturing of synthetic graphite anode in India and becoming the preferred supplier to global cell manufacturers. The company successfully commissioned India’s first graphite customer qualification anode material in Bellary, Karnataka, with capacity expansion plans to 100,000 tons per annum in India and another 100,000 TPA in North America and Europe by 2030. More recently, the acquisition of a lithium-ion phosphate (LFP) based cathode active material technology center in Moosburg, Germany aligns with Mr. Handa’s vision of being the first global company capable of supplying both cathode and anode materials for lithium-ion batteries.

Under Mr. Handa’s leadership, the Epsilon Foundation has undertaken CSR projects that span a broad spectrum, including healthcare, education, sports, and infrastructure development. These initiatives have managed to transform the lives of over half a million people across India. Vikram graduated from the International School of Choueifat in 1997 before receiving his BA in computer engineering from Tufts University in 2001. He completed an executive education program in owner/president management (OPM) at Harvard Business School in 2022.