NEW DELHI: In a boost to the government’s ambitious ‘ Make in India ’ programme, Korean major Samsung plans to start export of India-made smartphones to Europe, Middle-East and Africa very soon. The company is more than doubling its production capacity to 12 million (1.2 crore) devices per month against nearly 5 million (50 lakh) at present.

The move comes at a time when Samsung faces one of its toughest periods in India after a high-pitched competitive onslaught by Chinese brands, particularly Xiaomi , in the mid-end of the market, and global rival Apple in the premium-end.

Samsung seems unfazed by the competitive pressures, and is rather preparing for a fresh wave of growth in India, which has emerged as the second-biggest smartphone market in the world (behind China). “We are going to boost our engagement in India further, and are making fresh investments of around Rs 5,000 crore to double the installed capacity. This should be completed by the end of this year,” a company source told TOI.

“Apart from displaying our seriousness when it comes to the Indian market, the move also highlights the capability of the factories here in producing high-quality products that meet global benchmarks,” the source said. Higher production numbers will also help realise further economies of scale, and thus boost price competitiveness.

The company is already producing the entire range of its devices locally (from factories in Noida), including entry-level feature phones and top-notch ones like Galaxy S9 devices. “Now we are preparing for the next onslaught — using India as one of the top global bases to service key markets in countries across Europe, Africa and the Middle-East,” the source added.

However, the source said the company expects the government to provide incentives for exports to make manufacturing in India competitive when compared to global hubs in Vietnam, China and Korea .

The company on Tuesday launched its flagship S9 (at Rs 57,900) and S9+ (at Rs 64,900) smartphones, days after they were unveiled at the Mobile World Congress at Barcelona.

Asim Warsi, senior VP for Samsung India’s mobile business, said revenues are growing at a rapid pace, notwithstanding the tough competition. “Our revenues from sale of mobile phones grew by 27% in 2016-17 to close the year at Rs 34,300 crore. We are maintaining a similar growth in 2017-18.”

