Telecom Sector PLI: DoT may Announce Names of Selected Vendors Soon: Report

Financial Express reported that the DoT will announce the names of companies it selected under the telecom sector PLI scheme in the coming weeks. The publication added that the DoT has processed the applications submitted by 36 companies for the said scheme.

DoT To Announce Selected Telecom Vendors Soon

An official told the FE, “the processing has already been done and the names of the selected firms will be announced in a couple of weeks." Previously, 36 companies including Nokia, Cisco, Flex, Foxconn, among others have applied for the Telecom Sector PLI scheme.

Notably, the government has earmarked incentives worth Rs 12,195 crore for MSME, local, and international telecom equipment vendors.

Back then, Samsung had not participated in the PLI scheme, citing that it has Reliance Jio as its only customer. However, back in July, it said that it will consider approaching the government and seek a deadline extension.

Interestingly, officials have said that the investment proposals thus received have already crossed the government's target of Rs 3,000 crore. Local and global companies have offered to invest Rs 4,500 crore, to manufacture telecom gear worth Rs 2.44 lakh crore locally by 2026. However, the government will approve investment worth Rs 3,700-3,800 crore under the scheme, the officials said.

What is the Telecom Sector PLI?

The PLI scheme, announced in February, will see 10 large manufacturers and 10 MSMEs selected to receive incentives. The government has set aside Rs 12,195 crore over five years by achieving production targets. Of this amount, the government has set aside Rs 1,000 crore for MSMEs; the government will select at least three local MSMEs.

The government said that it expects the telecom sector PLI scheme to bring more than Rs 3,000 crore in investments. What's more, the government estimates a tax revenue of Rs 17,000 crore. Furthermore, the government also expects the scheme will encourage the production of equipment worth Rs 2.44 lakh crore; the scheme will also facilitate exports of around Rs 2 lakh crore.

The scheme will cover core telecom products such as core transmission equipment, 4G/5G RAN and wireless equipment. It will also include access and customer premises equipment (CPE), IoT access devices, other wireless equipment and enterprise equipment like switches, routers, and so on.