Tata Group is getting close to purchasing a significant Wistron Karnataka factory in southern India in a deal that would establish the first domestic iPhone manufacturing plant in India.
The airline-to-software conglomerate, which requested anonymity, has been in talks with Taiwan's Wistron Corp, the factory's owner, for some time and hopes to close the sale by the end of March. They claim that the two businesses have discussed a variety of potential partnerships, with Tata taking a majority stake in a joint venture being the current focus. Details have also emerged that Tata will be in charge of the primary manufacturing operation with assistance from Wistron. ALSO READ: Netflix adds new game on Android and iOS: All you need to know
Foxconn Technology Group and Wistron, two of Taiwan's leading manufacturing giants, are responsible for the majority of Apple Inc.'s iPhones. Tata's deal would help India's efforts to create local rivals to challenge China's dominance in electronics, which have been hampered by political tensions with the US and Covid-related obstacles. ALSO READ: Apple brings new parking feature for Maps
The Indian conglomerate intends to finish a due diligence process by March 31 in order for its Tata Electronics subsidiary to formally assume Wistron's role in a program that grants it incentives from the government. The next incentive cycle will begin on April 1, the first day of India's fiscal year. In order to expand into new markets like servers, Wistron has agreed to sell its iPhone production business in China to a rival in 2020. ALSO READ: Why is Instagram removing the shopping tab from the home feed?
Tata has taken additional actions to strengthen its relationship with Apple. It has hired more people to work in its iPhone parts factory in Hosur, near Bangalore. The several hundred acres of land that make up that plant may see the addition of iPhone manufacturing lines by Tata in the years to come. Tata has also stated that it will open 100 Apple stores in the 1.4 billion-strong nation. This quarter, Mumbai will see the opening of the first of these stores.
