Tata Group in Talks to Manufacture iPhones with Wistron

India’s leading conglomerate Tata Group is in talks with Wistron, a Taiwanese supplier to manufacture iPhones in a joint venture in India, according to a report by Bloomberg. 

The salt-to-software conglomerate could acquire a possible stake in the Indian unit of the Taiwanese OEM (original equipment manufacturer), as Wistron already has a plant in India and contracts manufactures iPhones for Apple Inc.

According to sources, the move is aimed at establishing the company as a force in technology manufacturing—with Tata Group wanting to tap into the expertise of the Taiwanese company’s supply chain and assembly and product development. 

If successful, this pact could make Tata the first Indian company to build iPhones. The manufacturing of iPhones is currently assembled by Taiwan-based manufacturing giants such as Wistron and Foxconn Technology Group in India and China.

The new venture will aim to increase the number of iPhones assembled by as much as five times from what Wistron currently builds in India.  

The Tata Group denied to comment on the news. Sources close to the Cupertino-based Apple also responded that they were unaware and had not been part of any such talks. 

Given that the work in progress is significant, industry experts believe that manufacturing mechanical parts could help Apple increase the value addition of iPhone by nearly 5~6 per cent, with the current value addition with respect to iPhone being 18~20 per cent.

The government has expected the PLI-eligible companies to bag a value addition of 35 per cent by the end of the fifth year in the scheme. Once successful, the Tatas could become a part of the large global supply chain of Apple.