Reliance Strategic Business Ventures Limited had recently invested Rs 20 crore in equity shares of Neolync Solutions
Electronics contract manufacturer UTL Neolyncs has bagged the initial order of producing Reliance Industries Limited’s (RIL) JioPhone Next 4G smartphone.
As per a report by Economic Times, the conglomerate is looking to place an order of five million units, the initial part of which has gone to UTL Neolyncs.
The device was reportedly being tested at the manufacturing facilities of Wingtech Mobiles, Dixon Technologies, UTL Neolync and Flextronics Technologies.
The report further said, while citing sources, that the company expects to bring this entire order to market in the next six months, but it is wary of the chipset supply crunch which may affect its plans.
UTL Neolyncs is a joint venture between Bengaluru-based UTL Group and Neolync Solutions.
Reliance Strategic Business Ventures Limited (RSBVL), a wholly-owned subsidiary of RIL, had recently invested Rs 20 crore in equity shares of Neolync Solutions.
”The aforesaid investment is part of group’s overall 5G initiatives and commitment to Government of India’s ‘Made in India’ initiatives for fostering indigenous manufacturing especially in next gen 5G technologies,” RIL said in a regulatory filing with the Bombay Stock Exchange.
RIL may further investment up to Rs 40 crore in the company subject to Neolync achieving certain milestones. The investment is expected to be completed by March 2023.
The total investment, if done, will translate into RIL holding 40 per cent of equity share capital in Neolync. This would be on a fully paid up and diluted basis. Neolync has 49 per cent Israeli stake.
JioPhone Next, unveiled at the RIL annual general meeting on June 24 as the world’s most affordable 4G smartphone, will come bundled with various Jio and Google digital services. RIL has not officially revealed the pricing yet, although it is estimated to hit stores at a price of about Rs 3,500.
To begin with, the device is likely to be sold exclusively on JioMart and Reliance Digital stores.
