NEW DELHI, December 21 (CNA) — A subsidiary of Taiwan-based manufacturing giant Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. has received Production Linked Incentive subsidy approval from the Indian authorities for expenditures and sales from its manufacturing base in the country (PLI) system, according to the Indian Press Information Bureau (PIB).
In a statement released on Wednesday, Hon Hai’s subsidiary PIB said Foxconn Hon Hai Technology India Mega Development Private. ltd – Got the green light to receive approximately Rs.3.57 billion (US$42.29 million) for its spending and sales for the period 1 August 2021 to 21 March 2022.
iPhone assembler Hon Hai’s unit, also known worldwide as Foxconn, is the first global handset maker to be approved to receive subsidies under the PLI program, according to PIB.
The PLI program is a program launched by the Government of India in April 2020 to strengthen the country’s competitive advantage in electronics manufacturing.
In addition to the Hon Hai unit, Padget Electronics Private Ltd., a wholly-owned unit of Indian electronics maker Dixon Technologies, has also secured Rs.583 million, according to the PIB.
Approval for a subsidy application submitted by Hon Hai’s entity in India and another by Padget came from a committee set up by the Department for the Promotion of Industry and Domestic Trade (DPIIT) under India’s Department of Trade and Industry, the Department of Electronics and Information Technology, (MeitY) and the public policy think tank NITI Aayog, the PIB said.
In late December 2021, Hon Hai increased its investment in the Indian subsidiary by an additional $350 million, which industry sources said is aimed at expanding production of the unit at its facility in Chennai, the capital of Tamil Nadu, India’s southernmost state Roll out 13s.
Earlier this month, Hon Hai issued a filing on the Taiwan Stock Exchange, where its shares are traded, saying it has further increased investment in the Indian subsidiary by injecting an additional $500 million, of which industrial sources say believed they would be spent on the Chennai factory to produce the iPhone 14s, the latest Apple iPhone series.
The sources’ comments coincided with Indian news media reports in September that Apple would be producing the iPhone 14s in Chennai, implying that Hon Hai would be responsible for the launch at a time when domestic COVID-19 outbreaks in China are looming The Taiwanese company and many other foreign companies have reduced production at the Chinese factories.
Hon Hai has solid iPhone manufacturing experience in India, having manufactured iPhone XR, iPhone 11 and iPhone 12 in Chennai, the sources said.
