Foxconn Likely To Expand iPhone Manufacturing At Chennai Plant

iPhone manufacturer Foxconn is looking to expand its manufacturing capabilities in India by adding two new buildings to its Chennai plant. This is another development that affirms Apple’s India ambition.

The Foxconn India facility is situated at Sriperumbudur near Chennai.

“They (Foxconn) broadly indicated that there would be at least two more buildings that they would like to construct to manufacture iPhones,” a source cited by ET said, adding that the new facilities will be built apart from the two other buildings that have already been constructed at the Chennai site.

The iPhone maker is also looking to establish a research and development facility in Bengaluru’s Whitefield, two officials told the publication.

The development comes as Apple CEO Tim Cook is on a visit to India to launch the Cupertino-based tech giant’s first two stores in the country. Cook was present at the launch of the Apple BKC in Mumbai on Tuesday (April 18).

March also saw Foxconn chairman Young Liu visit India for the second time in a year and commit to further investments. Last December, Foxconn announced that it would invest $500 Mn in its India unit, per an exchange filing in Taiwan.

On top of this, the Taiwanese contract manufacturer was also looking to invest $200 Mn in its Telangana plant to manufacture Airpods.

Foxconn is also due to begin construction of an iPhone manufacturing and assembly unit near Bengaluru International Airport by this May. However, the R&D facility might also be a part of Apple’s larger plans.

Reportedly, iPhone exports from India have increased by 4X to reach $5 Bn in FY23, off the back of iPhone production reaching $7 Bn in the financial year. At the same time, its revenue from the country increased 50% to reach $6 Bn in the same financial year. 

Apple has also become one of the largest job creators in India, having created more than 1 Lakh jobs, per the Union Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology Rajeev Chandrasekhar.

Foxconn, Pegatron and Wistron – the three contract manufacturers in India – alone employ 62,300 employees among themselves, a number which is set to rise as the company is looking to bring more of its production to India.

As of now, India accounts for 7% of all iPhones manufactured. As the Cupertino giant looks away from China to diversify its supply chain, having been burnt due to China’s strict COVID policies, India has presented itself as a trusted alternative.

Earlier this year, Union Minister of Commerce Piyush Goyal said Apple is set to increase its production in India to 25% of its total production, without sharing a concrete timeline to hit the milestone.