India now assembles one in every five iPhones sold globally, cementing its position as a critical manufacturing hub in Apple’s supply chain diversification strategy. Yet, this manufacturing triumph masks an uncomfortable truth: the vast majority of Apple’s Indian suppliers are failing to embrace renewable energy, threatening the company’s ambitious 2030 clean electricity commitments. A new report from Climate Risk Horizons reveals that only two of Apple’s 13 Indian suppliers have made meaningful progress on renewable energy adoption through high-impact procurement routes. The remaining 11 either report no renewable energy consumption, rely solely on questionable energy certificates, or disclose no data whatsoever for their Indian operations. This stark gap between Apple’s sustainability rhetoric and ground reality in its fastest-growing manufacturing base raises urgent questions about corporate climate accountability. As Tim Cook champions India’s manufacturing potential and Apple targets 75% emissions reductions by 2030, the disconnect between corporate commitments and supplier implementation threatens to undermine the company’s environmental credibility.
Manufacturing Boom Built on Fossil-Fuelled Foundations
India’s transformation into a major iPhone assembly hub represents a remarkable industrial achievement. Production volumes have surged as Apple diversifies beyond China-centric manufacturing, with Indian factories now producing approximately 20% of global iPhone output. This expansion has created employment, generated export revenues, and positioned India as a serious contender in high-value electronics manufacturing—a sector where the country historically lagged behind East Asian competitors.
However, the “Greening India’s Apple” report exposes a critical oversight in this manufacturing success story. Only two suppliers—FIH Mobile Ltd., a Foxconn subsidiary, and Flex Ltd.—have procured renewable energy through impactful routes such as power purchase agreements or on-site generation. FIH operated with 35% renewable energy in 2024, whilst Flex reported 27.5% usage in 2022 and 2023. These figures, whilst representing genuine progress, fall considerably short of Apple’s stated goal of 100% clean electricity use across its supply chain by 2030.
The situation grows more concerning when examining the remaining suppliers. Tata Electronics, despite claims of carbon neutrality, achieves this status solely through purchasing international renewable energy certificates—a practice that generates no additional renewable energy capacity and delivers minimal local decarbonisation impact. RECs represent accounting mechanisms rather than physical renewable energy procurement, allowing companies to claim green credentials without fundamentally changing their actual electricity consumption sources. The remaining suppliers either report zero renewable energy usage or provide no data on their Indian operations, suggesting either lack of progress or insufficient transparency—neither scenario aligns with Apple’s sustainability commitments.
Climate Targets Confronting Supply Chain Reality
Apple’s global emissions targets are genuinely ambitious, aiming for 75% reduction in Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions by 2030 from 2015 levels, with all suppliers mandated to use 100% clean electricity. Scope 3 emissions, which encompass supply chain activities, represent the vast majority of Apple’s carbon footprint, making supplier renewable energy adoption critical to achieving overall climate targets. The company’s Supplier Clean Energy Programme ostensibly helps suppliers transition by advocating policy changes, providing information, and facilitating access to procurement options.
Simran Kalra, lead author of the Climate Risk Horizons report, emphasises that only two of 13 Apple suppliers with manufacturing units in India have reported renewable energy use in sustainability reports, describing this as far short of Apple’s 100% supply chain renewable energy goal. Suppliers are also lagging in energy data monitoring and verification, creating gaps that undermine the accuracy and credibility of Apple’s Scope 3 emissions reporting. Without reliable data on actual energy consumption and sources, Apple cannot credibly track progress towards climate targets nor identify which suppliers require additional support or pressure.
The report notes that more than half of suppliers’ renewable energy procurement in 2023 and 2024 relied on unbundled RECs, which don’t directly displace fossil fuel-based electricity generation. This distinction matters enormously—purchasing RECs allows companies to claim renewable energy usage without actually consuming clean electricity, enabling continued fossil fuel consumption whilst maintaining the appearance of environmental progress. True decarbonisation requires physical renewable energy procurement through mechanisms like power purchase agreements that fund new renewable capacity or on-site generation that directly replaces grid electricity.
Bridging the Gap Between Potential and Performance
Ashish Fernandes of Climate Risk Horizons characterises Apple’s choice of India as a manufacturing hub as excellent but expresses concern about suppliers’ lacklustre renewable energy performance. He emphasises that meeting the 2030 100% renewable energy goal is eminently feasible given India’s vibrant renewable energy ecosystem, but requires proactive engagement from Apple, their suppliers, and local distribution companies. India possesses substantial renewable energy capacity, supportive policies, and declining costs that should facilitate rapid supplier transition—making the current lag particularly puzzling.
The report recommends that Apple require Indian suppliers to pursue high-impact renewable energy procurement such as long-term power purchase agreements and on-site generation, alongside implementing stricter independent verification of energy data. It also highlights opportunities for Apple to directly invest in renewable energy infrastructure in India, following precedents established in other countries where the company has funded solar and wind projects specifically to power supplier operations.
The challenge extends beyond Apple alone to encompass broader questions about how multinational corporations ensure supply chain sustainability when manufacturing operations migrate to new geographies. India’s attractiveness as a manufacturing destination stems partly from competitive costs and improving infrastructure, but if environmental standards lag behind developed markets, the country risks becoming a destination for emissions-intensive production—undermining both Apple’s climate commitments and India’s own renewable energy transition. As India’s electronics manufacturing sector continues expanding, with Apple and other technology giants increasing local production, establishing credible renewable energy adoption amongst suppliers becomes critical. The current gap between two suppliers making genuine progress and 11 showing minimal commitment suggests systemic challenges requiring coordinated action from Apple’s procurement teams, supplier management, Indian renewable energy developers, and distribution companies. India possesses the renewable energy ecosystem to power sustainable electronics manufacturing—translating that potential into reality requires accountability, transparency, and sustained commitment from all stakeholders.