Tamil Nadu hopes to regain Foxconn’s trust as the company prepares for its second innings in India

CHENNAI: Taiwanese electronics contract manufacturing company Foxconn Technology Group’s exit from Tamil Nadu may not be the end of the story, state officials want to believe. Tamil Nadu is trying to get on to the list of states that Foxconn is preparing for its second innings in India.

The catch, however, is this: Foxconn has told government officials that while Tamil Nadu excelled in the quality of labour, bitter experiences of worker strife that rocked its units in 2010 are holding the company back from making a commitment.

The Taiwanese manufacturer of Apple’s iPhones earlier this month committed an investment of $5 billion (Rs 31,500 crore) in Maharashtra. Foxconn has also started making Xiaomi and InFocus phones in Sri City, Andhra Pradesh. It is scouting around in Gujarat, too.

“Foxconn has not shut its door on Tamil Nadu,” a top state government official said. Consultations are on with Foxconn executives to get the company to use its 300-acre land bank in the state.

One reason the officials may be optimistic is because Foxconn wants to convert part of the land into a domestic tariff area, which would allow products to be sold locally.

Tamil Nadu has said it will ask the central government to speed up clearance for the conversion. Foxconn, responding to a query on the possibility of a re-entry into Tamil Nadu, said a supportive business environment was the key.