Hong Kong (CNN) Apple supplier Foxconn says it is looking for Indian partners to collaborate in areas such as chips and electric vehicles, as the CEO completed a visit to the country.
from Taiwan Foxconn (HNHPF) is looking to expand its business in the South Asian giant after suffering severe supply disruptions in China last year. The company recovered from the disruptions early this year.
“India is a country with a large population,” Young Liu, the company’s chairman and CEO, said in a statement Saturday. “My trip this week supported Foxconn’s efforts to deepen partnerships… and seek collaboration in new areas such as semiconductor and electric vehicle development.”
“Foxconn will continue to communicate with local governments to seek the most beneficial development opportunities for the company and all stakeholders,” he added.
The company, best known for making Apple (AAPL)iPhones, is one of the world’s largest contract makers of electronics. It is now expanding into other areas, including electric vehicles.
Liu did not specify any capital expenditures in India during his trip, including a meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The company already has factories in the states of Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu.
On Friday, the investment promotion agency of the South Indian state of Karnataka announced that Foxconn had announced this a big deal there and that 300 acres of land had been allocated for a facility. The investment will create 100,000 jobs over 10 years in the state, it said.
According to a Bloomberg report citing anonymous sources, the company plans to invest about $700 million in a new factory in Bengaluru, the capital of Karnataka, to make iPhone components.
India has emerged as an attractive potential alternative to China for the likes of Apple. One of India’s top ministers, Piyush Goyal, said in January that Apple wants to ramp up production in the South Asian country to a quarter of its overall total from now between 5% and 7%.
For years, Apple had relied on a huge manufacturing network in China to mass-produce iPhones, iPads, and other popular products. But the country’s dependency was tested last year by Beijing’s strict zero-Covid strategy, which was quickly dismantled last December.
Apple devices are currently manufactured in India by Foxconn, Wistron and Pegatron, all of which are Taiwanese companies.
— CNN’s Diksha Madhok contributed reporting
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