July 9, 2018
Expansion at the plant, which started manufacturing mobile phones in 2005, comes as part of a more than US$710 million investment announced by the company in 2017
The new plant will serve the dual purpose of ‘Make in India’ as well as ‘Make for the World’, thus contributing to the India’s aim to set up a manufacturing base for global export
Besides Noida, Samsung operates another manufacturing plant at Sriperumbudur, near Chennai, five research and development (R&D) centers and one design center across India
PM Modi noted that India now ranks second, globally, in the manufacture of mobile phones, with the number of mobile phone factories rising from just 2, to 120, in four years’ time
Samsung Electronics Co Ltd on July 9th opened the world’s largest mobile phone manufacturing plant at Noida, near Delhi. Expansion at the plant, which started manufacturing mobile phones in 2007, comes as part of a more than US$710 million investment announced by the company in 2017. The facility was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and South Korean President Moon Jae-in, who is on his maiden state visit to India. The new plant will serve the dual purpose of ‘Make in India’ as well as ‘Make for the World’, thus contributing to the Indian Government’s aim to set up a world-class manufacturing base for local market as well as export. With the new facility, Samsung will double its current production capacity for mobile phones in Noida from 68 million units a year to 120 million units a year by 2020.
On the occasion, HC Hong, chief executive officer of Samsung India said that the Noida factory was “a symbol of Samsung’s strong commitment to India, and a shining example of the success of the Government’s ‘Make in India’ programme”. He added, “We ‘Make in India’, ‘Make for India’ and now, we will ‘Make for the World’.” Samsung’s Noida plant was one of the first global electronics manufacturing facilities set up in India that had started making televisions in 1997. The plant currently manufactures smartphones, refrigerators and flat panel televisions. The company runs another manufacturing plant at Sriperumbudur, near Chennai, five research and development (R&D) centers and one design center across India. During FY 2017-18, Samsung reported mobile phone sales of nearly US$5 billion from India.
While inaugurating the plant, PM Modi said that the latest investment by Samsung was significant in the context of the relationship between India and South Korea. He said that the ‘Make in India’ initiative was not just an economic measure, but also a resolve to secure better ties with global partners such as South Korea. The Prime Minister added that there was an open invitation for businesses across the world, who want to take advantage of the transparent business culture of New India, the nation’s growing economy and rising neo middle class. PM Modi noted that India now ranks second, globally, in the manufacture of mobile phones, with the number of mobile phone manufacturing factories rising from just 2, to 120, in about four years’ time. He said that this has created lakhs of employment opportunities.