Apple proposes $10M investment to comply with Indonesian rules to remove iPhone sale ban – report

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) has proposed to invest about $10M to make additional goods in Indonesia, amid efforts to have a ban on the sales of its new iPhone 16 models lifted in the country, Bloomberg News reported, citing people with knowledge of the matter.

The U.S. tech giant intends to invest in a facility in Bandung, southeast of Jakarta, in collaboration with its list of suppliers. The factory would make products such as accessories and parts for Apple gadgets, the report added.

Last week, it was reported that Indonesia had restricted Apple from selling the new iPhone 16 series in the country, as the company had yet to meet local investment requirements. Indonesia also banned the sale of Pixel smartphones made by Alphabet (GOOG) (GOOGL) due to rules that require certain devices sold domestically to contain at least 40% of locally manufactured parts.

Apple has filed its proposal to the Indonesian Ministry of Industry, which had blocked the permit for the sale of the phone as the company’s local unit did not meet the 40% domestic content requirement, the report noted.

The ministry is discussing the proposal, which is not final yet and could change, but is expected to reach a decision soon.

Apple does not have any standalone facilities in Indonesia and collaborates with domestic suppliers to make components or finished goods. The investment would be a small price for Apple to pay to access to the country’s 278 million consumers, the report noted.

Earlier in October, the industry ministry said that Apple had invested 1.5T rupiah ($95M) in Indonesia, below its pledge of 1.7T rupiah. The company has built four developer academies in the country.