Foxconn is investing at least $811 million into electric cars

Foxconn is well known for manufacturing Apple iPhones–and for controversy over its labor practices–but now the company is expanding to a new area. The electronics manufacturer announced in June that it would build an electric car, and that it would sell for less than $15,000. It’s now following that declaration with action, specifically a 5 billion yuan (about $811 million) investment in a potential factory in China’s Shanxi province, according to Computerworld.

Foxconn Technology Group, the maker of Apple’s iPhone, is investing at least $811 million to develop electric car manufacturing in a Chinese province. The Taiwanese company is making the investment in China’s Shanxi province, it said on Wednesday. Foxconn already has two factories in the province. One of these assembles smartphones while the other is devoted to producing robots and automation equipment, it added. Foxconn has largely focused on electronics manufacturing for clients including Microsoft, Sony and Amazon.com. But the company is branching out into new business sectors, as a way to grow its revenue streams. Analysts estimate that it makes as much as half of its revenue from assembling Apple products. In June, Foxconn’s CEO Terry Gou said that the company is targeting to build electric cars with a price of less than $15,000.