The Cupertino based tech giant Apple is in talks in Indian giant, Tata Group in addition to other chip manufacturers in India in order to secure semiconductor supplies worth $12 billion for its iPhones produced in the country.
Apple’s Plan to Shift 26% of iPhone Production to India
World’s most profitable company had previously shared its plans to shift 26% of its global iPhone production to India by 2026 and the recent discussions are a step in that direction.
Currently Micron and Tata Group are setting up facilities and by 2026 if the facilities are operational, then Apple would source a significant portion of its chip needs from these companies provided that the required semiconductor grades are produced. This would in turn created substantial business opportunities for them.
Though the semiconductor by Micron and Tata are not just for the Cupertino company, but also cater to the needs of sectors which include defence, aviation, and automotive. Notably, even though these sectors are de facto major chip consumers, but once Apple’s deal is finalized, none of these shall match to the semiconductor spending by Apple in India.
Amid Global Semiconductor Demand Surge, Apple’s iPhone Production in India Hits $14 Billion
In FY24, Apple’s iPhone production in India was valued at $14 billion, making it the largest production by any company in the country and accounting for around 14% of Apple’s global iPhone output.Apple is going through a surge in its global semiconductor consumption which surged from $18.8 billion in 2011 to over $67 billion in 2022, and currently stands at approximately $72 billion.
The company’s product portfolio includes iPhones, iPads, Macs, Apple Watches, and AirPods, all of which consume and rely lot on semiconductors. Since the year 2021, Apple started producing its iPhone product range in India through Taiwanese vendors under the smartphone production-linked incentive scheme.
Taiwanese Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) is a primary supplier for Apple. Notably, Apple consumes over 26% of TSMC’s global sales, which makes Apple third-largest chip consumer worldwide.
Before the pandemic time, Apple manufactured all its iPhones and most consumer products in China, which was the largest global chip consumer.
India’s semiconductor production initiative was launched in 2022 and came with a ₹76,000-crore incentive scheme and the country has already approved five major chip projects worth ₹1.5 lakh crore which includes the Micron’s ₹22,516-crore ATMP project and Tata Group’s various semiconductor facilities.
For such projects, the central government is providing 50% fiscal support. The government is also increasing the outlay of the scheme in order to attract more and more global players into setting upto their facilities in India, especially keeping in mind that the global chip industry is touted to reach $1-trillion by 2030.
