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Foxconn(Photo: Shutterstock)
The Tamil Nadu government on Tuesday cleared a Rs 13,180 crore project by Yuzhan Technology (India), a Foxconn Group company, at Kancheepuram. The unit is reportedly expected to assemble smartphone display modules and will be one of the first such units to cater to Apple’s growing presence in India.
The unit is expected to generate at least 14,000 jobs. Interestingly, of the 14 existing manufacturing units in the Apple supply chain, seven are already in Tamil Nadu. This comes as the American technology giant ramps up production in India through its largest vendors—Foxconn, Pegatron, Tata Electronics, and Wistron—to increase capacity.
The current suppliers in Tamil Nadu include Tata Electronics, Flex, Hon Hai Precision (Foxconn), Guangdong Lingyi iTECH Manufacturing Co, ON Semiconductor Corporation, Pegatron Corporation, Taiwan Surface Mounting Technology, and Zhen Ding Technology Holding.
In addition to this, the Cabinet cleared 13 new projects with an investment commitment of Rs 38,699 crore. Other investments mainly included a Rs 10,375 crore project by Leap Green Energy and a Rs 9,000 crore upcoming unit by Tata Motors in Ranipet.
The 14 projects are expected to create around 46,931 jobs. “These projects will be spread across 12 districts and span diverse sectors including auto and electric vehicles, electronics, green energy, telecom equipment, and advanced manufacturing,” said TRB Rajaa, minister of industries, Tamil Nadu.
Other projects that were cleared included Kaynes Circuits (Rs 1,395 crore), Freetrend Industrial India (Rs 1,000 crore), Grand Atlantis (Rs 500 crore), Ascent Circuits (Rs 612 crore), and Mahindra Electric Automobile (Rs 210 crore), among others.
“The #InvestInTN juggernaut continues to roll forward, transitioning from attracting investments to grounding them, and transforming them into high-quality jobs and industrial output,” he added.
Among the investments, Foxconn’s is crucial as Tamil Nadu has seen a spike in electronics exports recently, driven primarily by the rise in iPhone exports. The state is now India’s top electronics exporter, with exports reaching $9.56 billion in FY24, up 78 per cent from $5.37 billion in FY23, far ahead of Karnataka and Uttar Pradesh.
According to industry experts, one major reason for the rise in exports is the China Plus One strategy adopted by global players like Apple, which has led contractors such as Foxconn and Pegatron, along with suppliers like Salcomp, to contribute to Tamil Nadu’s emergence as an electronics hub.
Apple exported phones worth Rs 34,089 crore in the first four months of this financial year. While Apple is shifting a large part of its supply chain to India under the Make in India for the World initiative, it is also expanding its domestic market. In FY24, the company’s domestic market is expected to reach Rs 67,000 crore.
First Published: Oct 08 2024 | 6:47 PM IST
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