Problem statement 1:

Supply chain road map

With increased utilization of petrol/diesel for our growing economic needs, depletion rates of fossil fuels
have been ever increasing. The next looming challenge is to find an alternate fuel for our usage.

With that in context, aluminium and other metals have been touted to replace oil as the next generation
fuels, using new-age fuel cell and redox flow technologies.

Aluminium Fuel Cell Technology uses Aluminium, Dry Chemicals & Water as Fuel and is pioneering the
roadmap to a fossil fuel-free future, the biggest advantage being the inherent circular nature of the metal
and the current practices being followed to recycle the metal.

While in theory metal fuels can act as an effective replacement for oil, challenges still exist pertaining to
supply chains for metals, given the fact that the oil industry has evolved over decades and have
established their own supply chain planning across nations and continents.

To not run into similar problems existing in the oil supply chain, the next fuel has to follow principles of
circular economy and has to be abundant enough to last for us for centuries to come. With that in mind,
Aluminium is recognized to play a major role with ~8% of Earth's crust covered with Aluminium in
addition to its high recyclability rates.

Problem Statement:
An Aluminium Fuel Cell setup might require 24 kgs of Aluminum for 24 hours. This possesses a
completely new challenge for the Energy Supply Chain of this kind, with the emphasis on the supply
chain to be carbon neutral & utilize existing supply chains.

Keeping the oil & gas supply chain as a reference,

A) Develop a framework for usage of Aluminum as a fuel
B) Propose a model that can help to solve supply chain challenges for AFC
C) Develop a business plan that can help an existing aluminum manufacturer to scale up

The challenge is to estimate the following:

• Map their supply chain (materials and consumables) for the period of
o 6 months & 12 months
• Conduct a stakeholder analysis for the fuel cell technology
• Create a supply chain model for key cities mentioned in the “Considerations” section
• Identify the key challenges associated with each city with respect to the supply chain of materials
and consumables
• What cost advantages does each city bring in with their operations and infrastructure challenges?
• How do you incorporate renewable energy in the Aluminum’s existing supply chain?

Considerations:
• Aluminium for Aluminium Fuel Cells is manufactured in the states of Karnataka, Odisha and
Jharkhand
• Five Aluminium Fuel Cell systems of 100 kW each are deployed in the cities of Delhi, Mumbai,
Gangtok, Kashmir, and Kavaratti
• Each system consumes 24 kgs of Aluminium and 1000 L of water-based electrolyte for 24 hours
of uptime.

Assumptions:
• Electrolyte cost to be INR 10 per Litre
• Aluminium cost to be INR 200 per kg