Smartphone maker Oppo Mobiles is planning to invest around Rs 22 billion in India for a mobile phone manufacturing facility. The proposed investment will be at Greater Noida.
The company has submitted documents related to the proposed project to the Environment Ministry and said that the net amount required for the establishment of the second unit in Uttar Pradesh includes land as well as development costs.
The project is expected to be a self-sufficient manufacturing establishment, spreading across an area of 110.04 acres.
According to media reports, Oppo said its other assembly unit in Noida, which began production in July 2016, has reached full capacity and plans were being firmed up for the setting up of a Surface Mount Technology (SMT) manufacturing facility at Greater Noida in the state.
An SMT unit produces printed circuit boards of an electronic device on which various circuits are embedded that allow the basic functioning of the device.
At present, most companies, assemble phones from semi-knocked down (SKD) mobile phone modules or kits. SMT is part of the completely knocked down (CKD) phase of assembling, wherein a handset-maker imports individual components in a CKD form and assembles them in India. This takes manufacturing a step up from SKD.
In the next 2-3 years, in line with company’s plan, Oppo will begin exporting phones manufactured in India to West Asia, North Africa and other South Asian markets. Currently, the products are offered restricted to Indian consumers.
