Samsung has opened the doors of what it's calling the world's largest smartphone factory.
The 35-acre facility, located outside New Delhi in the city of Noida, will double Samsung's capacity in India from 68 million units per year to 120 million units annually, the firm said.
The factory was formally inaugurated on Monday by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and South Korean President Moon-Jae In, underscoring Samsung's efforts to increase production in the world's fastest growing major mobile phone market.
It's also expected to help Samsung better compete with rivals like China's Xiaomi, which became India's biggest smartphone brand by shipments earlier this year.
Samsung says the 'phase-wise' expansion will be completed by 2020.
'This 50 billion-rupee investment will not only strengthen Samsung's business ties in India, it will also play a key role in India-Korea relations,' Modi said in a speech in Hindi at the inauguration of the plant.
Samsung said last year it would spend 49.2 billion rupees ($716.57 million) over three years to expand capacity at its Noida plant.
Built in 1996, the Noida factory was one of the first global electronics manufacturing facilities established in India, according to the firm.
The bigger plant will aid Samsung in meeting the 'growing demand' for its products in India, as well as its goal of 'making India an export hub for the world,' the firm noted.
Flagship models like the Samsung Galaxy S9, S9+ and the Galaxy Note 8 will be manufactured at the facility, as well as entry-level phones that are priced at less than $100, Bloomberg said.
Samsung has also faced growing concerns about the health of its mobile business, as the unit continues to see less-than-stellar profit growth.
Samsung, which has been assembling phones in India since 2007, also plans to export India-made handsets.
'We "Make in India", "Make for India" and now, we will "Make for the World",' H C Hong, Chief Executive Officer at Samsung India said in the statement.
India currently counts about 400 million smartphone users out of its population of 1.3 billion people, meaning there's still a vast amount of potential consumers to draw from, the Verge noted.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government has imposed taxes on imports of key smartphone components as part of a plan to encourage electronics manufacturing in India which would boost growth and create millions of new jobs.
While Modi's flagship 'Make in India' campaign is still a long way from delivering on ambitious job promises, the program has had some success with the phased manufacturing of mobile devices and components.
More than 120 local factories currently assemble mobile phones and accessories like chargers, batteries, powerbanks and earphones in India, according to tech research firm Counterpoint.
'It's a move that'll obviously play well for Samsung but it also gives a much-needed shot in the arm to India's mobile manufacturing ecosystem as it will push rivals to consider expanding local production,' said Navkendar Singh, an associate research director at International Data Corporation.
