(Yicai Global) March 17 -- Goertek, a Chinese acoustic products supplier for US tech giant Apple, has declined to comment on a report that it could be set to lose a major contract to Hon Hai Precision Industry, also known as Foxconn.

“All questions that are relevant to the customer will not be answered as there is a non-disclosure agreement,” said a Goertek executive in response to Yicai Global’s inquiry, following a report that Foxconn has secured an order to make AirPods for Apple.

Foxconn has won an order to produce the wireless earbuds and plans to invest more than USD200 million to build a factory in India to make them, Reuters reported yesterday, citing two people with direct knowledge of the matter.

The report also pointed out that it was not immediately clear if Foxconn's plan would affect current AirPod suppliers.

Goertek revealed last November that one of its main foreign clients was suspending orders of a smart acoustic product. Ming-Chi Kuo, an analyst with TF International Securities, said the product was Apple’s AirPods Pro 2 and the suspension was due to quality problems. But shares in Goertek surged last month after Kuo said that the contract was set to resume.

Goertek is the major supplier of Apple’s wireless Bluetooth earbuds, but if Foxconn gets the AirPods order, Goertek’s share would be significantly reduced, Ivan Lam, a senior research analyst at Counterpoint Research, told Yicai Global, citing a report in Cailian Press. 

The Goertek executive also told Yicai Global today that the company has no plans to set up a facility in India. A number of tech firms in Apple’s supply chain have plants in India, including Foxconn, Luxshare Precision Industry, Wingtech Technology, Sunwoda Electronic and Shenzhen Everwin Precision Technology.

Goertek already has a production facility in Vietnam, the executive said. 

Editors: Zhang Yushuo, Tom Litting