Apple Tells Component Suppliers To Source iPhone 16 Batteries From India

NEW DELHI, (IANS) – To diversify its global supply chain and move manufacturing out of China, Apple has informed its component suppliers of its preference to source batteries for the upcoming iPhone 16 from Indian factories, a media report said on December 6.

According to the Financial Times, battery manufacturers, such as Desay of China, have been encouraged to establish new factories in India, while Simplo Technology, a Taiwanese battery supplier for Apple, has been asked to increase manufacturing in India for future orders.

Companies like Desay and Simplo package the electric cells produced by TDK and their counterparts into modules and send them to assemblers such as Taiwanese contract manufacturer Foxconn, the report mentioned.

Foxconn plans to invest $1.54 billion in India. In a stock exchange filing, Foxconn said that the investment will help it fulfill “operational needs.”

Meanwhile, Apple has asked the Indian government to exempt its existing iPhones from the requirement of a common charging port (USB-C) for electronic devices, as the Centre evaluates the possibility of mandating a common charger for most devices.

In a meeting with the IT Ministry officials late last month, Apple told the officials that if such a rule — like what has been proposed by the European Union to require devices to have universal charging ports — is brought, it may hamper its domestic manufacturing plans, sources said.