Wistron Corp. are aimed at making Tata a force in technology manufacturing. If it is true, the pact could make Tata the first Indian company to build iPhones, which are mainly assembled by Taiwanese manufacturing giants.

An Indian company making iPhones would be a massive boost for the country’s effort to challenge China.  It could also persuade other global electronics brands to consider assembly in India.

It wasn’t immediately clear if Apple was aware of the talks, which come at a time the US tech giant is looking to diversify more production away from China. Apple is known to work with local companies in regions where it sets up manufacturing bases. But assembling iPhones is a complicated task that entails meeting the US company’s tight deadlines and quality controls.

The structure of the deal and details such as shareholdings are not yet finalize, and talks are ongoing. The plan could entail Tata buying equity in Wistron’s India operations or the companies could build a new assembly plant, one of the people said. They could also execute both those moves, the person said.

The new venture aims to eventually increase the number of iPhones assembled by as much as five times from what Wistron currently builds in India. A partnership would also likely result in Mumbai-based Tata obtaining a share of Wistron’s manufacturing business beyond smartphones.

Tata Group Chairman has said electronics and high-tech manufacturing are key focus areas for the company. Industries such as software, steel and cars account for much of Tata’s business. But it has taken early steps in the smartphone supply chain by starting to manufacture iPhone chassis components in southern India.

Wistron began making iPhones in India in 2017, after years of efforts by Apple. The Taipei-based company currently assembles iPhones at its plant in the state of Karnataka in southern India.