DECEMBER 20248TATA ELECTRONICS PARTNERS WITH PEGATRON TO PRODUCE 5M IPHONES ANNUALLYGOVERNMENT SLASHES PRICE OF LOCALLY PRODUCED NATURAL GASIndia's Tata Electronics has taken a significant step toward becoming a key Apple supplier by acquiring a majority stake in Taiwanese contract manufacturer Pegatron's sole iPhone plant in India. The deal forms a joint venture, with Tata holding a 60 percent stake and overseeing daily operations, while Pegatron retains 40 percent and provides technical expertise, according to insider sources. The government has for the second time in a month cut supplies of cheaper domestically produced natural gas to CNG retailers, who have warned of their profitability being hit. Indraprastha Gas Ltd - the firm that retails CNG to automobiles and piped cooking gas to households in the national capital and adjoining cities - in TOP STORIESa stock exchange filing said domestic supplies have been cut by about 20 per cent effective November 16.Previously, supplies had been cut by about 21 per cent effective October 16."Based on another communication received by the company from GAIL (India) Ltd (the nodal agency for domestic gas allocation), this is to inform that there has been further reduction in domestic gas allocation to the company effective from November 16, 2024. The revised domestic gas allocation to the company is approx. 20 per cent lesser than previous allocation which will have an adverse impact on profitability of the company," IGL said."The company is exploring all options to address the issue," IGL said.Natural gas pumped from below the ground and from under the seabed from sites ranging from the Arabian Sea to Bay of Bengal within India is the raw material that is turned into CNG for sale to automobiles and piped cooking gas to households.Production from legacy fields, whose price is regulated by the government and which are used to feed city gas retailers, has been falling by up to 5 per cent annually due to the natural decline that has set in. This has led to supply cuts to city gas retailers. The internal announcement was made last week, and the companies plan to seek approval from the Competition Commission of India (CCI) shortly. This move follows Apple's strategic push to diversify its supply chain beyond China, driven by rising geopolitical tensions between Washington and Beijing. For Tata, acquiring Pegatron's Chennai plant aligns with its ambitions to ramp up iPhone manufacturing in India. The plant employs approximately 10,000 workers and produces 5 million iPhones annually, making it Tata's third iPhone production facility in the country. Tata has rapidly expanded its presence in the iPhone manufacturing space, joining Foxconn as one of India's leading contract manufacturers. It previously acquired Wistron's iPhone assembly plant in Karnataka and is constructing another in Hosur, Tamil Nadu. The Hosur facility also houses a component manufacturing unit, which recently made headlines due to a fire incident in September. Analysts predict that India's contribution to global iPhone shipments will reach 20-25 percent this year, up from 12-14% in 2023. This acquisition underscores Tata's growing influence in Apple's supply ecosystem and highlights India's increasing role in global smartphone manufacturing. Keep up with the latest updates on Tata, Apple, and India's booming iPhone production industry.
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