January 2017 – After wooing Maharashtra for a while, it appears that Taiwan company Foxconn, the biggest contract manufacturer for Apple, is setting up its first manufacturing unit in India in Ahmedabad, to make the iconic iPhones.

Foxconn is likely to set up smartphone assembly lines in multiple cities across India, and apart from Ahmedabad is considering Gurgaon as the second location.

A Gujarat government official, on condition of anonymity, has confirmed Foxconn’s plan to set up an iPhone assembly unit in Ahmedabad according to reports appearing in a section of the media. A formal announcement is expected during the forthcoming Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit 2017 to be held at Gandhinagar.

Foxconn declined to comment, saying Foxconn Technology Group follows a “strict company policy of not commenting on any matters related to current or potential customers or any of their products".

India has emerged as one of the fastest growing markets for Apple’s iPhone in the world, with sales growth crossing 50 per cent in the 12 months ended September. While the base is still tiny, at three million units per annum or two-three per cent of the market, Apple is already the second largest smartphone maker in India in terms of revenue.

Foxconn has a facility in Sri City in Andhra Pradesh, where it produces smartphones for Xiaomi, Gionee and Reliance Jio’s Lyf. It is in talks with the government to revive the Nokia facility in Chennai, while its proposal to invest $5 billion in Maharashtra is yet to take off.