- The proposed facility will reportedly have plants for making electric buses and batteries for EVs.
- Apart from Taiwan, Foxconn has also partnered with companies in Thailand and Saudi Arabia.
Taiwanese electronics contract manufacturer Hon Hai Precision Technology (Foxconn) will invest $820 million over the next three years to build a new manufacturing facility in Kaohsiung, southern Taiwan as it looks at venturing into the electric vehicles (EV) sector.
The proposed facility will reportedly have plants for making electric buses and batteries for EVs. Taiwan intends to become a major player in the EV industry, with the government providing incentives to attract investment and support the development of local talent in the field.
Foxconn has been eyeing the EV segment for quite a while to diversify its operations from its major Apple business. Apart from Taiwan, it has also partnered with companies in Thailand and Saudi Arabia.
It has formed a joint venture with Chinese automaker Geely, to provide contract manufacturing services for EVs. Currently, its EV components business is on the road to growing to $3 billion this year.
The company has said that its auto business would generate $33 billion in annual revenue by 2025. Despite all the affirmations from the company, its EV manufacturing business has seen relatively slow growth with only a few prototypes, a few dozen electric buses and about 40 electric Endurance pickup trucks for a former General Motors Co. factory in Lordstown, Ohio. Foxconn was forced to suspend its operations in Lordstown because the cost of making the trucks exceeded the targeted sale price of $65,000.
Last week, Foxconn reported mixed results with revenue in the first quarter of FY24 rising 3.9% year-on-year to $74.14 billion (511.85 billion Chinese yuan) for the full year, beating market estimates.
