Apple partner Foxconn is planning to set up $700 million plant in India: Report – Times of India

Cupertino-based tech giant Apple has been making multiple changes to its supply chain to reduce its dependency on China. The iPhone maker decided on this move after the US imposed several sanctions on Beijing. According to a report by Bloomberg, as tensions between the US and China deepen, Apple’s biggest supplier Foxconn Technology Group is planning to invest in a new plant in India. Foxconn is reportedly planning to invest about $700 million to set up a new production plant in the country. The report states that sources familiar with the plan have claimed that this investment will help boost local production.
Foxconn’s $700 million Indian plant plan
Taiwan-based Foxconn is known for its flagship iPhone component production unit Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., which is located in China. The Apple supplier is now planning to build a new plant to manufacture iPhone parts in India. The rumoured plant will be set up on a 300-acre site which is close to the airport in Bengaluru, Karnataka, the report adds
The upcoming factory is also expected to assemble Apple’s handsets. Meanwhile, Foxconn may also use the site to produce some parts for its electric vehicle business. This plant is likely to be the biggest single investment by Foxconn in India to date. Moreover, the rumoured Foxconn plant is also a step towards China losing its status as the world’s largest producer of consumer electronics.
Along with Apple, other US-based brands have also asked their Chinese suppliers to explore alternative production locations like India and Vietnam. The global supply chain also went through a transformation during the pandemic and the Ukraine war. More such decisions from major tech companies may soon change the way global electronics are made.
How Foxconn’s new plant will help India
Foxconn’s new production site in India is expected to create nearly 100,000 jobs, the report said. The company’s iPhone assembly complex located in the Chinese city of Zhengzhou currently employs nearly 200,000 people. The figure also tends to increase during the peak production seasons.

The company’s decision to shift production will help India to close the tech gap with China. This decision also seems timely as more western investors and corporations are turning their back on Beijing’s crackdowns on the private sector.
Foxconn started producing the latest generation of iPhones at a site in Tamil Nadu in 2022. India has also offered financial incentives to the Apple supplier. Smaller rivals including Wistron and Pegatron have also pushed their production in India. Apart from this, suppliers like Jabil Inc. have also started making components for AirPods locally.