Narendra Modi government has given the go-ahead for the establishment of three semiconductor units under ‘Development of Semiconductors and Display Manufacturing Ecosystems in India. The Union Cabinet approved three semiconductor plant proposals on Thursday, two in Gujarat and one in Assam, for an estimated cost of Rs 1.26 lakh crore. The proposals include India's first semiconductor fabrication plant or fab by Tata Electronics and Taiwan's Powerchip Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp. (PSMC) in Gujarat's Dholera at a projected cost of Rs 91,000 crore. The JV will have a capacity of 50,000 wafers per month. All three ventures are slated to commence construction within the next 100 days.
Union I-T minister Ashwani Vaishnav Vaishnav disclosed that the Cabinet has endorsed Tata Semiconductor Assembly Test's semiconductor assembly and testing unit in Assam, with an investment of Rs 27,000 crore. Moreover, CG Power and Japan's Renesas are set to collaborate on setting up a plant in Gujarat's Sanand, aiming to produce 15 million chips per day at an approximate cost of Rs 7,600 crore.
Delving into the capabilities of the semiconductor fab, Vaishnaw elaborated, “The facility will manufacture 50,000 wafers per month, with each wafer yielding around 5,000 chips. This translates to the production of approximately 300 crore chips annually.”
These chips are expected to cater to a diverse array of sectors, encompassing high-power computing, electric vehicles, telecom, defence, consumer electronics, automobiles, and power electronics.
Vaishnaw underscored the prolonged efforts spanning decades to establish a semiconductor fab in India, stressing the importance of clear intention and policy for success. He attributed the realization of this ambitious undertaking to the visionary leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Regarding the timeline, Vaishnaw assured that the foundation laying will commence expeditiously, drawing parallels with the swift initiation of Micron's facility in Sanand, Gujarat, where construction commenced within a mere 90 days.
The approved three semiconductor units are:
- Semiconductor Fab with 50,000 wfsm capacity:
Tata Electronics Private Limited (“TEPL”) will set up a fab in partnership with Powerchip Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp (PSMC), Taiwan.
Investment: This fab will be constructed in Dholera, Gujarat. Investment in this fab will be Rs.91,000 crore.
Technology partner: PSMC is renowned for its expertise in logic and memory foundry segments. PSMC has 6 semiconductor foundries in Taiwan.
Capacity: 50,000 wafer starts per month (WSPM)
Segments covered:
- High performance compute chips with 28 nm technology
- Power management chips for electric vehicles (EV), telecom, defence, automotive, consumer electronics, display, power electronics, etc. Power management chips are high voltage, high current applications.
Semiconductor ATMP unit in Assam:
Tata Semiconductor Assembly and Test Pvt Ltd (“TSAT”) will set up a unit in Morigaon, Assam.
Investment: This unit will be set up with an investment of Rs.27,000 crore.
Technology: TSAT semiconductor is developing indigenous advanced semiconductor packaging technologies including flip chip and ISIP (integrated system in package) technologies.
Capacity: 48 million per day
Segments covered: Automotive, electric vehicles, consumer electronics, telecom, mobile phones, etc.
Semiconductor ATMP unit for specialized chips:
CG Power, in partnership with Renesas Electronics Corporation, Japan and Stars Microelectronics, Thailand will set up a unit in Sanand, Gujarat.
Investment: This unit will be set up with an investment of Rs.7,600 crore.
Technology partner: Renesas is a leading company focussed on specialised chips. It operates 12 semiconductor facilities and is an important player in microcontrollers, analog, power, and System on Chip (‘SoC)' products.
Segments covered: The CG power semiconductor unit will manufacture chips for consumer, industrial, automotive and power applications.
Capacity: 15 million per day
Strategic importance of these units:
- Within a very short time, India Semiconductor Mission has achieved four big successes. With these units, the ecosystem will get established in India.
- India already has deep capabilities in chip design. With these units, our country will develop capabilities in chip a fabrication. Advanced packaging technologies will be indigenously developed in India with today's announcement.
Employment potential:
- These units will generate direct employment of 20 thousand advanced technology jobs and about 60 thousand indirect jobs.
- These units will accelerate employment creation in downstream automotive, electronics manufacturing, telecom manufacturing, industrial manufacturing, and other semiconductor consuming industries.
Ram Kumar Kaushik is a seasoned journalist with over 25 years of experience across mediums. The architect of this news website, he is also a consultant with several media groups. He was formerly the group managing editor of ITV Network (NewsX, India News and The Sunday Guardian) and its digital products.
