Apple Supplier Pegatron In Talks To Open Second Factory In Chennai For iPhone Assembly: Report
Through Wistron and later Foxconn, Apple has made a significant investment in India.
Apple supplier Pegatron Corp. is looking to set up a second India factory in India, reported news agency Reuters. The Taiwanese electronics manufacturing company already has a facility in Chennai. According to the report, Pegatron plans to add a second facility just six months after opening the first one with an investment of $150 million.
Citing two sources with direct knowledge of the matter, the report said that the new factory is "to assemble the latest iPhones".
The report comes as the iPhone maker is looking to diversify its production and move from China. Reacting to the report, Pegatron told Reuters, "Any acquisition of assets will be disclosed based on regulations."
Since it started assembling iPhones there in 2017 through Wistron and later Foxconn, Apple has made a significant investment in India, which is the second-largest smartphone market in the world after China. Apple is also planning to produce iPad tablets and AirPods in the country, the report said.
India is seen as the next market for Apple's expansion. According to the India Cellular and Electronics Association, almost 50 per cent of the $9 billion worth of cell phones exported from India between April 2022 and February of this year were iPhones, the report said.
Annually, Pegatron currently accounts for 10 per cent of Apple's iPhone production in India, research firm Counterpoint said.
In an effort to prevent a potential blow to their business from escalating China-US trade tensions, Apple and its major suppliers have started moving production away from China. Pegatron has been attempting to increase its presence in North America and Southeast Asia lately. The company is in the process of finalising plans to begin leasing a second Pegatron facility, which would be situated inside Mahindra World City close to Chennai, not far from where the first plant was opened in September 2022.
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The planned investment amount for the expansion by Pegatron is not readily known. The new plant, according to the source, will be smaller than the first one, the report said
This week, Karnataka approved a $968 million investment by Foxconn, leading to the creation of 50,000 jobs.
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