Apple supplier Pegatron in talks to open second factory in India: Report

As per the sources, the company’s second facility may come near the southern city of Chennai in Tamil Nadu state. For the unversed, Pegatron opened its first India factory in Chennai almost six months ago. It then invested $150 million.

The new factory, the first source said, is “to assemble the latest iPhones”. The new factory, it added, will be smaller than the first one.

Pegatron currently accounts for 10% of Apple’s iPhone production in India on an annualised basis, research firm Counterpoint said.

The Reuters report says that Pegatron declined to comment but said, “Any acquisition of assets will be disclosed based on regulations.”

Apple and its key suppliers have been shifting production away from China, owning to the increasing trade frictions between US and China. In recent years, Pegatron has sought to expand its footprint in Southeast Asia and North America.

According to the India Cellular and Electronics Association, India is seen as the next growth frontier for Apple. Around $9 billion worth of smartphones have been exported from India between April 2022 and February this year, and iPhones accounted for more than 50% of that.

India is the second biggest smartphone market in the world, where Apple also plans to assemble iPad tablets and AirPods.

The report says that the talks for starting a second Pegatron facility on lease are ongoing and it will be located inside Mahindra World City near Chennai, just around where the company inaugurated the first plant in September 2022.

Pegatron’s planned investment outlay for the expansion is not immediately clear, it further states. 

A report by Reuters last week said that Foxconn – another key Apple supplier has plans to build a $200 million factory in India to produce the wireless earphones for Apple after winning a contract. The company already assembles some iPhone models at its Tamil Nadu plant.

(With inputs from agencies)