Apple mulls first manufacturing facility in Indonesia after CEO Tim Cook meets Joko Widodo

Apple has no manufacturing facilities in Indonesia, but since 2018 it has been setting up app developer academies, which including the new academy have a total cost of 1.6 trillion rupiah (US$99 million).

Apple CEO Tim Cook with Indonesia’s Minister of industry Agus Gumiwang Kartasasmita, right, and Minister of Communication and Information Technology Budi Arie Setiadi, left. Photo: AP Photo

Indonesia’s industry minister, Agus Gumiwang Kartasasmita, who also attended the meeting, told reporters that if Apple decided to build manufacturing facility in Indonesia, it would have the capacity to produce for export.

“We will discuss how Apple’s facility in Indonesia could become a global supply chain,” he said, adding that the government said that even if Apple did not build a factory, it could partner with Indonesian companies to obtain components.

Apple has met Indonesia’s 35 per cent local content requirement to sell its products by investing in developer academies, Agus said, but the government hoped that number could be pushed higher with a manufacturing facility.

Apple has based much of its key manufacturing of iPads, AirPods and Apple Watches in Vietnam. Suppliers for MacBooks are also investing in the country.
Indonesia has a huge, tech-savvy population, making the Southeast Asian nation a key target market for tech-related investment.