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Work begins at Samsung's Indian plant
Samsung's $15 million-plant on the outskirts of New Delhi will produce 1 million units per year.
South Korea's Samsung Electronics Co Ltd, the world's third-largest mobile phone maker, said on Monday its Indian handset plant had begun production, helping it cut lead times and costs.
Samsung's $15 million-plant on the outskirts of New Delhi will produce 1 million units per year for the world's fastest growing mobile market, and capacity will be ramped up to 20 million units annually by 2010.
"Our unit ... will not only provide us the price advantage to produce locally but will also reduce time to market for our new models," HC Ryu, managing director at Samsung Telecommunication, said in a statement.
The first product was a flip top phone -- the SGH X-200.
The plant is Samsung's third overseas unit with one each in China and Brazil. It will act as a sourcing hub for southwest Asia.
Samsung's Korean rival LG Electronics Inc already has a plant in India, Asia's third-largest economy. Top handset maker Nokia is also in the process of setting up a handset manufacturing unit in the country.
