Land Transfer To Foxconn For iPhone Plant In Final Stages: K’taka Govt

The Karnataka government is reportedly in the final stages of transferring land to electronics manufacturer Foxconn for building its upcoming iPhone assembly plant on the outskirts of Bengaluru. 

“… The process relating to handing over land is in the final stages. There were some issues, so I have personally held meetings four times in this regard, as we did not want to lose the project. Foxconn, which manufactures Apple phones, is very prestigious for us,” said state minister MB Patil while responding to a question in the Legislative Assembly on Thursday (April 13). 

As per news agency PTI, Patil also informed that the Taiwanese company would invest $1 Bn in the plant in the first phase, which will create 50,000 jobs in the vicinity of the unit. 

The manufacturing plant will come up at a 300-acre land in the Information Technology Investment Region (ITIR), spanning Doddaballapur and Devanahalli taluks. Overall, Foxconn aims to invest $1.7 Bn in building and scaling up the facility. 

The comments come nearly four months after a high-level clearance committee of the state government gave its nod to Foxconn’s investment proposal. In June, it was also reported that Foxconn would begin manufacturing iPhones at the proposed facility by April 2024. 

The project is expected to create employment and give a major lift to the industrial infrastructure in the area. 

The Taiwanese giant has been on an overdrive to scale up investments in the country. Last month, the company hinted that it would manufacture EV components in the country. Prior to this in May, Telangana IT Minister KT Rama Rao said that the electronics major would invest $500 Mn in setting up a plant in Telangana. 

The Apple’s contract vendor is also planning to add two new buildings in Chennai and establish a research facility in Bengaluru’s Whitefield.

However, Foxconn recently scrapped its $19.5 Bn joint venture with conglomerate Vedanta to manufacture semiconductors in Gujarat. 

Foxconn is not alone in scaling up its base in the country. Looking to leverage the government’s production-linked incentives (PLIs) and other offerings, Apple has moved a part of its iPhone production from China to India. Additionally, Google has also been in talks with the Centre to set up a manufacturing facility in the country for its Pixel smartphones. 

In late May, Xiaomi also said that it was set to commence the production of wireless audio products in India soon in partnership with homegrown player Optiemus at the latter’s factory in Uttar Pradesh.