Samsung is reportedly planning to move a major part of its smartphone production from Vietnam and other countries to India. The company is in the final stages of the plans, The Economic Times reports.
According to the report, Samsung is planning to manufacture smartphones worth $40 billion in India over the next five years. The South Korean tech giant has already submitted its estimates to the Indian government, people familiar with the matter told the publication.
Out of the said estimates of $40 billion, phones with a factory price of over $200 could account for more than $25 billion. Most of the phones manufactured in this category will be exported, the report cites a senior government official as saying. The remaining $15 billion worth of smartphones may sell within the Indian sub-continent.
There is no official confirmation yet from Samsung regarding this. The company didn’t respond to the ET‘s requests for comments. However, with the latest developments, it is reportedly looking to avail the Indian government’s PLI (Production Linked Incentive) scheme.
Samsung will diversify its production lines for making smartphones in India under the PLI scheme. This move may have an impact on its existing production lines in other countries including Vietnam, the report adds. Vietnam is the second-largest smartphone manufacturing hub in the world after China.
Samsung to move smartphone production to India
Samsung has its biggest mobile phone manufacturing unit in Noida, India. It has been gradually increasing smartphone production in the country over the past few years. The newest move may now see the company shift a significant part of its smartphone production to India.
The Korean giant currently manufactures around 50 percent of its smartphones in Vietnam. The company also has manufacturing bases in Brazil, Indonesia, and its home country South Korea. However, because of higher labor costs in South Korea, it is now reportedly looking to “wind down” the production of mobile phones in its home country.
It appears the company will be shifting the production from South Korea to India. In addition, the company may also shift smartphone production from other countries to the world’s second-biggest smartphone market. It also makes TVs for the local market in the country.
Samsung is also planning to set up a smartphone display plant in India. The company signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the local authority earlier this year. The firm plans to invest up to $705.75 million to set up the display manufacturing facility in the country.
Samsung’s arch-rival Apple is also shifting its smartphone production lines from China to India. The company is reportedly manufacturing the iPhone 11 and iPhone SE 2020 models in the country.