HFCL to invest ₹425 cr under PLI Scheme for 5G, telecom manufacturing

Telecom equipment manufacturer HFCL Limited, has committed an investment of ₹425 crore under the production linked incentive (PLI) scheme to manufacture eligible telecom products, including 5G radio equipment, routers, switches, Wi-Fi products, and backhaul radios. 

Launched in 2020, the PLI Scheme is an initiative of the Central government to make India a global manufacturing hub for Telecom and Networking products and to boost the export of these products under the Make in India program. 

HFCL has also received approval to avail incentive up to ₹652.79 crore from Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI), Project Management Agency (PMA) and competent authority designated by the government on its application for participation in PLI scheme. 

The announcement comes only a day after the Ministry of Communications expanded the PLI scheme for telecom and networking products with 42 companies including Nokia, Samsung, Flextronics, Tejas Networks, and VVDN among others.  These apart, 28 medium and small enterprises (MSMEs) that have been cleared for receiving approval from the centre under the scheme have submitted proposals for investments worth ₹4,115 crore.  

The total incentives will be availed over a period of five years, between the financial year 2022-23 to 2026-27, the company said in a statement. 

Mahendra Nahata, MD, HFCL, said that this initiative will enable HFCL to be more competitive globally by adding margin-accretive products under its portfolio.

HFCL recently launched a slew of next-generation technology products at the India Mobile Congress, one of Asia’s largest digital technologies platforms, which included the open-source Wi-Fi 7 access points and 5G Lab-as-a-service, among others. Further, it has also recently announced a technical collaboration with Qualcomm for design of 5G outdoor small cell and fixed wire-line access product development.