Samsung is setting up India’s first smartphone display manufacturing unit on the outskirts of Delhi.
The South Korean company is investing more than ₹3,500 crore in this facility in Noida, as per a regulatory filing with the Registrar of Companies (RoC). It could later be expanded to manufacture displays of other devices as well.
The chaebol’s flagship India entity, Samsung India Electronics, has transferred a plot to a group company, Samsung Display, in its existing manufacturing plant area and has given a loan of ₹3,500 crore to meet the investment and working capital requirement for establishing the production unit.
As per the regulatory disclosures, sourced from business intelligence platform Veratech Intelligence, Samsung India said it had incorporated a group entity, Samsung Display Noida, “with the principal business of manufacturing, assembling, processing and sales of displays (including their parts, components and accessories) for all types and sizes of electronic devices.”
Samsung said the plant would produce displays of mobile phones and IT display. However, an industry executive aware of the plans said the plant would initially produce displays for mobile phones, but could later extend it to laptops and televisions. The current investment will be enhanced as the capacities increase and Samsung Display sells the component to other brands like it does globally, he said. The first phase will become operational this year itself.
An email sent to Samsung India seeking comment remained unanswered till Friday press time.
This fresh investment will expand Samsung’s play in the component segment, with display panel being one of the largest components by value used in the manufacturing of mobile phones and televisions.
It has recently started the world’s largest mobile phone manufacturing unit in India, at a total outlay of ₹4,915 crore. This enhanced investment comes at a time when the government wants to impose duties on imported displays for both smartphones and televisions to help boost its make in India efforts.
Veratech Intelligence founder Mohit Yadav said Samsung’s decision to invest heavily to build cellphone displays in India was a significant boost to make in India. This highlights that Samsung is confident that consumption will increase in India, he said.
ET had written last year that Samsung Display wanted to set up a manufacturing unit in India and that another group entity, Samsung SDI India, was looking to start local production of smartphone batteries.
Samsung India has allotted the plot to Samsung Display for a consideration of ₹92.02 crore as per the RoC disclosures. The ₹3,500 crore loan is for three years.
