Taiwan’s Foxconn Technology Group, a key supplier to Apple Inc, on Monday pledged to invest Rs 1,600 crore to set up a high-end electronics component manufacturing unit in Tamil Nadu’s Kanchipuram district generating jobs for about 6,000 people.
The investment to be made by Foxconn Industrial Internet (Fii) was finalised at a meeting between Foxconn Chairman Young Liu and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin at the Secretariat here, following which a Letter of Intent was signed between the two sides. Fii is the largest subsidiary of Foxconn Technology Group.
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Sources told DH that Fii will set up a greenfield state-of-the-art manufacturing unit to produce electronics components for mobile phones in the Kanchipuram district. This new facility will be independent of Foxconn’s units in Sriperumbudur that currently assemble flagship Apple iPhones for the domestic and international markets.
Foxconn Industrial Internet (Fii) to invest Rs 1,600 crore in #TamilNadu to set up a high-end electronics component manufacturing plant.
The decision comes after Foxconn Technology Group chairman Young Liu met Chief Minister M K Stalin here@DeccanHerald https://t.co/fySSzOkl87
— Sivapriyan E.T.B | சிவப்பிரியன் ஏ.தி.ப (@sivaetb) July 31, 2023
DH had on July 20 reported that Fii invest in Tamil Nadu after a meeting between Stalin and the company’s CEO. The development comes weeks after Fii proposed to set up its unit in Karnataka’s Tumakuru near Bengaluru at an estimated cost of Rs 8,800 crore.
“Foxconn’s repeated investments and expansion plans in Tamil Nadu are a testament to the state being the top choice for manufacturing in India for major companies across the world. This is a major achievement for the state,” Industries Minister T R B Raaja said.
With this proposed investment and many more to come, Tamil Nadu is poised to not only remain the top electronics exporter in the country but also significantly increase its electronics exports in the coming years, the minister added.
Last week, Pegatron, another major contract manufacturer of Apple Inc, indicated that it will undertake the Phase-2 of its manufacturing unit near Chennai.
A key supplier of Apple, Foxconn is being wooed by Karnataka and Tamil Nadu among other states with the Taiwanese electronics major scouting locations for its own semiconductor assembly plant, for which it applied with the Union Government after the break-up with Vedanta.
Foxconn has a significant presence in Tamil Nadu with its Sriperumbudur plant assembling high-end iPhone 14, and iPhone 13, even as the company continues to expand the massive facility, 50 km from Chennai, further as Apple Inc plans to move a significant portion of its China operations to India. It is also planning to assemble iPhones in Karnataka and Telangana.
The development also comes close on the heels of the state emerging as the no.1 in the country in electronics exports at $5.37 billion in the 2023 fiscal, moving from the fourth position in fiscal 2022. Ramping up and launch of production by Foxconn, Pegatron, and home-grown Tata Electronics Private Limited (TEPL) helped the state pip Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, and Maharashtra, officials said.
The state, which is already home to the top 16 electronics manufacturers, including Nokia, Samsung, Flex, Dell, Motorola, Salcomp, HP, and Foxconn, wants the electronics industry to be on par with automobiles which accounts for 37.6 per cent of the country’s automobile and auto component exports, apparel (30.8 per cent) and footwear (46.4 per cent).
The state has two exclusive Special Economic Zones (SEZs) for Electronics and Hardware manufacturing in Sriperumbudur, 50 km from here, and in Oragadam, 70 km from here, spread over 800 acres.
