Apple supplier Foxlink’s factory in India catches fire, production halted

The Foxlink factory is located in Vikruthamala village in Chitoor district of Andhra Pradesh, near Tirupati. The company makes cables for iPhones.

Fire breaks out at the Foxlink Indian facility

According to the report, the fire broke out at the Foxlink Indian facility, which was set up in Andhra Pradesh back in 2020. The incident happened in the afternoon and damaged roughly around 50 percent of the machinery present in the factory. The information was shared by J Ramanaiah, who leads the Fire Services Department for Tirupati district, Andhra Pradesh. The blaze is now reportedly under control.

While the business impact on Apple has not officially been revealed yet, and neither has been the cause of the incident, the loss is estimated to be around Rs 1 billion (around $12 million), as per Ramanaiah. “Management has conveyed to us that they estimate a loss of roughly 1 billion rupees ($12 million) from the incident,” said Ramanaiah. Apple, however, has so far not responded to a request for comment.

Though there has been a significant monetary and infrastructural loss because of the incident, thankfully, there has been no loss of life, and the workers are reported to be safe, which is a relief amid the chaos. The fire is now under control and the damage control has been done. Various Reuters photos and videos of the factory blazed with machinery inside have been popping up on the internet lately. The videos and photos show a huge pile of smoke rising from the plant.

Foxlink is a unit of Taiwan’s Cheng Uei Precision Industry. It set up a factory in Andhra Pradesh in 2020. Wistron, Foxconn and Pegatron are Apple’s contract manufacturers who make iPhones in India.