TAIPEI – Foxconn aims to develop 10 to 12 facilities in India by 2020, says chairman Terry Gou, according to reports.

The electronics manufacturer may spend a "few billion dollars" developing the sites, according to Gou.

It’s not immediately known how many jobs this could create.

Foxconn's decision comes as it deals with rising expenses at 25 sites in China, where wages have more than doubled in the last five years.

The firm recently closed a cellphone plant in southern India, prompting protests from some of the 1,700 workforce there. Foxconn did not disclose reasons for the closure, aside from a changing customer base.

Gou said Foxconn plans to cooperate with local companies such as Micromax Informatics, a smartphone maker, according to reports.

The new Indian plants are expected to be modelled after Foxconn's Guiyang facility.

Concrete deals in India have not been signed yet, but Foxconn is conducting feasibility studies and Gou hopes to sign a contract by the end of 2015.