Tata set to be first Indian firm to manufacture iPhones in India as Wistron factory deal nears

Mangalore Today News Network

New Delhi, July 11, 2023: Tata Group may soon become the first Indian company to assemble iPhones for India and other global markets. Tata has been in talks to acquire Taiwan-based Wistron Corp’s factory in Karnataka for months. As reported by Bloomberg, both parties are "close to an agreement," adding that a formal takeover may happen by August. Wistron assembles iPhone 14 at its Karnataka facility, which will be overseen by Tata Group once the deal is finalised. Tata’s deal could boost India’s reputation in the hardware manufacturing segment, which has also been the PM Narendra Modi-led government’s long-term goal. The government has been aggressively pushing for its made-in-India initiative, which was also on the table during PM Modi’s latest visit to the US.

 

The report states Wistron’s factory in Karnataka is potentially valued at $600 million (over Rs 4000 crore). The facility employs over 10,000 workers that assemble the latest-gen iPhone 14. The report adds that the Taiwanese manufacturer has committed Apple to ship iPhones worth $1.8 billion in the current fiscal year. Wistron signed the deal with the iPhone maker to win in the fiscal year through March 2024, as per people familiar with the Tata-Wistron deal to Bloomberg. The factory is also planning to triple the plant’s workforce by next year. Tata has reportedly agreed to honour these deals.

Apart from Wistron, Apple gets select iPhone models, including iPhone 13, iPhone 12, and iPhone SE, assembled in India through Taiwanese suppliers, like Foxconn Technology Group and Pegatron Corp, in India.

Tata’s deal to take over the Wistron factory in India will also be significant as several tech companies are looking at China alternatives for the assembly of their premium devices. Apple is already banking heavily on India as the next manufacturing hub. A report last month noted that Apple might increase iPhone production capacity to 18 per cent by 2025, up from 7 per cent in 2023. The boost in the production of electronics, like phones, also stems from the tax incentives by the Indian government.

India has also managed to attract other smartphone players to set up factories in India.

Samsung opened the "world’s largest mobile factory" in Noida, Uttar Pradesh. Many Chinese brands, including Xiaomi and Vivo, assemble their devices in the country, which also get exported elsewhere. Last month, India’s top electronics industry body, the India Cellular and Electronics Association (ICEA), informed IANS that smartphone exports from the country have experienced significant growth of 128 per cent in the months of April and May this year. In May, the country exported phones worth Rs 12,000 crore, with iPhone exports amounting to Rs 10,000 crore.

Not just Tata, Indian mining giant Vedanta had plans to set up a semiconductor project in the country. The company was in talks with Foxconn to set up the plant. However, the deal fell apart after Foxconn pulled out of the joint venture with Vedanta. It is also a blow to PM Modi’s chipmaking plans in the country.

Courtesy: India Today