NEW TAIPEI: The world’s largest contract electronics manufacturer Hon Hai Precision Industry Co Ltd will partner with flat-panel maker Innolux Corporation in investing T$86.8 billion ($2.8 billion) in a panel-producing plant in Taiwan.
Hon Hai is trying to branch out aggressively by finding new revenue sources beyond contract assembly for the likes of Apple Inc . Earlier this year it bought stakes in a Taiwanese mobile network provider and a South Korean IT services provider.
The world’s No 3 flat-panel maker Hon Hai and Innolux are currently buying tools for the facility located in the southern port city of Kaohsiung and which is expected to start production in the second half of 2016, an Innolux representative said on Thursday.
The plant will be shipped to China for assembly in final products, despite China imposing a 5 percent tariff on imported displays.
The Hon Hai group is investing in the LTPS(low-temperature polysilicon) panel-making plant to meet the demand of an “exclusive” customer according to a statement from Innolux.
The Innolux representative said the investment may take the form of a new joint-venture company. it was not immediately clear how the firms would crack the investment and the plans are still awaiting final approval from the boards of both companies.