Foxconn to set up Apple phone manufacturing unit in Karnataka, inks pact

Foxconn chairman Young Liu discussed investment in the state and also promised to look into investment in the semiconductor sector, he said.

Liu also inspected the location where the proposed manufacturing unit will be setup and also visited the newly inaugurated terminal 2 at Kempegowda International Airport.

Though neither the state government nor Foxconn disclosed the investment amount, industry sources said it will entail an investment of $700 million.

“The world’s leading electronic manufacturing company Hon Hai Technology Group (Foxconn) is expected to make a huge investment in the state and around one lakh jobs are likely to be created. An MoU was signed in the presence of Basavaraj Bommai on Friday,” the CM’s office said.

The Karnataka CM has said that the state has the requisite technical talent to host a global manufacturing firm.

Foxconn currently manufactures iPhones in Tamil Nadu under the production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme. Two other contract manufacturers of Apple make iPhones in India under the PLI scheme: Pegatron in Tamil Nadu and Wistron in Karnataka.

In fact, the Taiwanese company seeks to move its manufacturing base from China to India, following the output at the Zhengzhou plant that plunged ahead of the year-end holidays due to Covid-related disruptions. This prompted Apple to re-examine its China-reliant supply chain. Foxconn’s decision is the latest move that suggests suppliers may move capacity out of China far faster than expected.

Earlier in the day, the Foxconn delegation met the state’s Minister of Electronics and Information Technology Dr C N Ashwathnarayan.

“The company which stands second globally in manufacturing Apple phones is considering setting up its unit in proximity to an airport in the state. So, the delegation will be taken to show the 300 acres of land at KIADB, Doddaballapura,” the minister said.

The delegation is expected to meet PM Narendra Modi in New Delhi after the Bengaluru visit. The delegation was in Hyderabad on Thursday prospecting for investments.

The Karnataka government recently amended the Factories Act, 1948, to allow 12-hour working days in the state in order to be competitive in the manufacturing sector like China, South Korea, and Vietnam etc.