Taiwan-based electronics manufacturer Foxconn is reportedly planning to invest a total of CNY25 billion ($3.7 billion) in several projects as part of the development of a new energy battery R&D centre and production base in Kunshan, in China’s Jiangsu Province.
China’s state Xinhua News Agency said CNY8 billion ($1.2 billion) will be invested in the first phase, as agreed in a strategic cooperation agreement the company signed with the Kunshan government.
As one of the seven Foxconn projects, a CNY45 million ($6.6 million) “first stage capital input” will be used in the research and development of lithium batteries that are “the key breakthrough power technology for new energy vehicles”, Xinhua said.
The other projects range from activities in the new energy battery sector to Internet of Things and pollution solutions and prevention, which Xinhua said indicates Foxconn is “marching strongly into new areas, such as intelligent manufacturing, artificial intelligence, and new energy”.
According to Xinhua, Foxconn has invested a total of $1.7 billion in Kunshan within the past 24 years.