Tata will buy 60% stake in Pegatron India, share in iPhone production will increase to 44%

Tata Electronics today announced the purchase of 60 per cent stake in Pegatron Technology India, the Indian arm of Taiwan’s Pegatron Corporation, which makes iPhones on contract for Apple. According to people familiar with the development, this deal will significantly reduce the gap between Tata Electronics and Foxconn in terms of iPhone production in the country. Foxconn also makes iPhones on contract for Apple.

Tata had been in talks for a long time to buy a majority stake in Pegatron’s iPhone factory near Chennai. Earlier in March 2024, Tata Electronics had acquired the Karnataka factory of another Taiwanese company Wistron. iPhones are also made for Apple in this factory.

According to the data provided to the central and state governments by the companies manufacturing iPhones on contract, a total of iPhones worth about Rs 1.50 lakh crore were produced in India in 2024. Of these, Foxconn produced iPhones worth Rs 84,000 crore (56 percent of total production), Tata Electronics produced iPhones worth Rs 40,000 crore (26 percent) and Pegatron produced iPhones worth Rs 26,000.

After the Pegatron deal, Tata Electronics’ share in iPhone production in the country will increase to 44 percent and the production gap between Foxconn and Tata will reduce. This will also significantly increase the number of employees of Tata Electronics. 17,000 employees working directly at Pegatron will come to Tata Electronics, taking the company’s total employee strength to 48,000.

With the increase in production, Tata Electronics will also have a larger share in iPhone exports. Tata’s share in the total iPhones shipped out of the country in 2024 was 29 percent, which may increase to 48 percent after the Pegatron deal.

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Commenting on the deal, Randhir Thakur, CEO and Managing Director, Tata Electronics, said, ‘The acquisition of majority stake in Pegatron Technology India is in line with Tata Electronics’ strategy to expand manufacturing. We will enter a new era of AI, digital and technology based manufacturing. The company will use new technology for manufacturing in its factories. An email was sent to Tata Electronics for more information about this but no response was received till the time of writing.

Experts tracking the development say that Pegatron had slowed down its iPhone production in India due to the ongoing acquisition talks. Now after the deal, the production from its factory is expected to accelerate under the leadership of Tata.

Apart from this, Tata Electronics is also setting up a new iPhone factory in Hosur, Tamil Nadu, which is expected to be operational by the end of this year. After the commissioning of this plant, the production of iPhone will increase further. Foxconn has also announced a $2 billion investment to strengthen its manufacturing footprint in India.

Under the deal, Tata Electronics will integrate its team with Pegatron to streamline operations. The Pegatron factory will be rebranded to align with the new ownership structure but maintain its commitment to high quality electronics manufacturing.

Tata Electronics earlier used to supply only components for iPhone but now it is producing iPhone on a large scale. In 2023, Tata produced iPhones worth Rs 14,300 crore, which increased by 180 percent to Rs 40,000 crore in 2024.

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