Corning picks TN over Telangana to set up Rs 1,000 cr smartphone glass factory

With the government change in Telangana came the news that US-based Corning Inc, the key Apple supplier, has reportedly picked Tamil Nadu over Telangana to set up its Rs 1,000 crore facility, in collaboration with domestic electronics manufacturer Optiemus Infracom.

Earlier, the then K. Chandrashekar Rao-led state government had announced in September that Corning Inc has chosen Telangana to set up their Gorilla Glass manufacturing facility.

The proposed facility in Telangana is expected to generate employment for over 800 people, said a statement from the office of former state IT and Industries Minister, K.T. Rama Rao.

Rama Rao had met John Bayne, Senior Vice President, Ravi Kumar, Global Operations Executive, and Sarah Cartmell, Director Government Affairs from Corning Inc. in New York.

“Several electronics manufacturing companies are increasingly choosing Hyderabad as their destination. Foxconn made a significant investment in the State earlier this year, and now Corning’s investment in Telangana will propel a new era of smartphone manufacturing in Telangana and in India,” he had said.

According to The Economic Times, citing sources, Corning Inc is now looking to set up a Rs 1,000 crore manufacturing facility at Pillaipakkam near Sriperumbudur and will employ 300 people.

According to the report, Corning has picked Tamil Nadu over Telangana due to its proximity to other Apple suppliers like Foxconn and Pegatron.

The memorandum of understanding (MoU) is likely to be signed at the Global Investor Meet (GIM) in January.

In October, homegrown Optiemus Infracom Limited and Corning announced they will manufacture 30 million pieces of high-quality finished cover glass parts for the mobile consumer electronics industry in the first phase, and will employ more than 500 people in India.

Both the firms under the joint venture — Bharat Innovation Glass (BIG) Technologies — will manufacture the parts. Cover Glass is a key component to electronic devices.

“We are committed to make available world-class high-quality products for global and local brands. Embarking on this new journey, we intend to emerge as one of the top manufacturers of finished cover glass parts for use in mobile consumer electronic devices in the next five years,” said Ashok Kumar Gupta, Chairman, Optiemus.