Tech giant Apple will not apply for the production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme 2.0 for laptops and computer hardware, quoting sources aware of the development The Hindu Businessline reported on Friday. According to the report, the central government launched the scheme recently with a budgetary allocation of Rs 17,000 crore aiming to convince companies like Dell, Samsung, and Apple to manufacture IT hardware in India.
Sources privy to the development told the newspaper that the Cupertino-based company is currently aiming to only localise mobile and accessories manufacturing in India. It also said that the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (Meity) is aware of the development.
On May 19, Rajeev Chandrasekhar, minister of state for technology, told Bloomberg that Apple and Samsung are among the companies interested in increasing electronics production in India.
Apple has benefitted from the first PLI scheme for producing iPhones and Apple accessories in the country. However, the company is looking to increase the production of laptops in Vietnam instead of India. It is expected to start making MacBooks there by mid-2023. It can also benefit India as under the India-Vietnam free trade agreement, laptops assembled in Vietnam will be sold in India without customs duties.
Meanwhile, Foxconn, supplier of Apple Inc., will start manufacturing iPhones in Karnataka by April 2024. The firm will start manufacturing by April 2024, the state government said on Thursday. According to a report by Reuters, the land for the Foxconn facility would be handed over to the company by July 1, the government said, adding that the project, valued at Rs 13,000 crore ($1.59 billion), is expected to create around 50,000 jobs.
Foxconn, the world's largest contract electronics manufacturer, has set a target of manufacturing 20 million iPhones a year at the plant in Devanahalli, on the outskirts of Bengaluru.
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