Chennai: American manufacturer of Gorilla Glass, Corning Inc, which is also a key supplier for Apple, is planning to set up a manufacturing facility in Tamil Nadu with an investment of Rs 1,000 crore, The Economic Times (ET) reported on Tuesday.

The proposed factory is intended to be located at Pillaipakkam near Sriperumbudur and is expected to generate employment for 300 individuals.

This venture marks the company's entry into the Indian market.

While earlier reports indicated the company would set its factory in Telangana, the latest ET report suggests that Tamil Nadu has been chosen over Telangana due to its proximity to other Apple suppliers such as Foxconn and Pegatron.

In the initial phase, the new manufacturing facility, established as part of the 70:30 joint venture between Optiemus and Corning, will focus on providing premium finishing for smartphone cover glasses. The joint venture entity is named Bharat Innovation Glass (BIG).

Anticipated to start operations in 2024, the facility is slated to have a production capacity of 30 million pieces in its first phase.

The Indian factory will process cover glasses for both the front and back panels of smartphones.

To support this initiative, the joint venture has sought assistance from the central government and has applied for incentives under the Scheme for Promotion of Manufacturing of Electronic Components and Semiconductors (SPECS).

Notably, SPECS offers a financial incentive of 25 percent on capital expenditure for a specified list of electronic goods within the downstream value chain of electronic products.