Tata to manufacture iPhones in India after completing Wistron purchase deal

Tata Group is set to start assembling Apple iPhones in India after Wistron approved the sale of its Indian manufacturing unit to the salt-to-software conglomerate, a minister said on Friday.

A Tata company will start making iPhones in India for domestic and global markets, Deputy Minister for Information Technology Rajeev Chandrasekhar said on social media platform X.

PM @narendramodi Ji’s visionary PLI scheme has already propelled India into becoming a trusted & major hub for smartphone manufacturing and exports.

Now within just two and a half years, @TataCompanies will now start making iPhones from India for domestic and global markets from… pic.twitter.com/kLryhY7pvL

— Rajeev Chandrasekhar ?? (@Rajeev_GoI) October 27, 2023

Wistron – Tata deal for iPhone manufacturing

The Wistron board approved the sale of Wistron InfoComm Manufacturing India to Tata Electronics for an estimated $125m, according to a statement from the Taiwan-based supplier shared by the minister.

Wistron did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Apple has been touting India as its next big growth driver as it looks to move some production away from China.

The tech giant began iPhone assembly in the country with Wistron in 2017, before expanding through contracts with firms including Foxconn, and Pegatron.

In December 2020, the Wistron plant in Karnataka state’s Narasapura was forced to shut for three months after workers destroyed property during protests over non-payment of wages, causing millions of dollars in losses.

Also read: Google looks to India for Pixel smartphone manufacturing