Foxconn Technology Group has won approval to invest at least US$1 billion more in a plant it is building in India that will make Apple products, a major ramp-up in its goal of building a hub beyond China.
The world’s biggest assembler of iPhones plans to spend that amount on top of the US$1.6 billion it earlier set aside for the 300-acre (121-hectare) site close to Bangalore’s airport, people familiar with the matter said.
The new capital will bankroll additional capacity for Apple devices, including likely the iPhone, people familiar with the matter said, declining to be named as the information is private.
Including the most recently approved spending, the Taiwanese firm will have set aside roughly US$2.7 billion for the site, set to become the centrepiece of the its manufacturing capabilities in India.
Foxconn, Apple’s most important manufacturing partner, has ramped up its budget for the plant at least once this year.
It started out in early 2023 with plans to invest just US$700 million in the complex, located in the southern tech hub of Karnataka. Though the bulk of the new investment is for Apple, Foxconn is likely to use a portion of the money and the plant to make devices and components such as electric vehicle parts for other customers.
Karnataka’s government said Tuesday it had approved another 139.11 billion rupees (US$1.7 billion) of overall Foxconn investment in the state, without specifying details. The company could also use the site to produce parts for its nascent EV business, Bloomberg News reported in March.
Foxconn and Apple representatives did not respond to requests for comment.