When 40 technology firms such as HP, Dell, Lenovo, etc, have applied for the revised IT Hardware production-linked incentive scheme, interestingly, the two of the biggest global tech players – Apple and Samsung decided to give it a miss for the second time.
How Did This Happen?
According to them, the prime reason for the same is the small market size India offers when it comes to laptops and personal computers, said the sources close to the company.
It’s not like smartphones, where India is a big market and the two are participating in the PLI.
In the case of laptops and personal computers, the Indian market is 2.4% of the global demand.
The other fact is that laptops and PCs comprise a small part of the overall portfolio of these companies.
So, it does not make sense for Apple to shift its production base from China or for Samsung from Vietnam to India.
Not only that but putting up an alternative assembly line does not make sense.
At present, Chinese vendor BYD Electronic International, is the contract manufacturer for Apple’s iPads and MacBooks.
Why Would This Happen?
Earlier, the company had shown interest in setting up an assembly line in India in 2021.
However, they did not get permission from the government as following border clashes in 2020, the government was discouraging Chinese investments.
Later on, BYD set up an iPads and MacBook factory in Vietnam in September 2022.
Hence, it is not possible for them to set up another manufacturing unit in India even through a joint venture with an Indian partner.
Earlier, Apple’s $294 billion turnover for the nine months ended July 1, 2023, (the company follows the September financial calendar).
During this time, iPhones contributed around $157 billion, with Mac and iPad contributing only around $44 billion.
Thus it makes sense for the company to deepen the production of smartphones in the country, and continue with the production of Mac in locations other than India, according to the industry experts.
When it comes to Samsung, as it manufactures on its own and does not use contract manufacturers, it may not have participated because its incentive payment of around Rs 900 crore for FY21 is still stuck due some discrepancies found by the government in the invoices raised.
Economies Of Scale
The chief analyst at Techarc, Faisal Kawoosa said, “Manufacturing is all about economies of scale. Since there are not enough volumes and market size is small, it is not feasible for these (Apple and Samsung) companies to set up multiple manufacturing facilities but continue with centralized production.”
He further added, matching quality standards with contract manufacturers here will also be difficult for these companies.
Notably, the replacement as a market opportunity in the laptop and PC segment is less compared to smartphones.
“Samsung and Apple could explore tie-ups with companies which are PLI beneficiaries,” said Tarun Pathak, research director at Counterpoint.
Further, Pathak said, “Benefits from PLI 2.0 can offset 2-3% of the disabilities,” on cost advantage and maintaining the right quality of products if Apple and Samsung make in India.
When it comes to the IT PLI Scheme 2.0 with an outlay of Rs 17,000 crore, it covers laptops, tablets, all-in-one PCs, servers and ultra small form factor devices as target segments.
Out of the 40 companies who have applied, 33 are domestic, while seven are global companies.
