Mumbai: In a significant step towards creating an indigenous semiconductor ecosystem in India, the government has approved a proposal from Tata Electronics to build a mega semiconductor fabrication facility ('Fab') in Dholera, Gujarat, in partnership with PSMC, said an official statement on Saturday. The fab construction will begin this year with a total investment of up to Rs 91,000 crore (~US$11bn) and will generate over 20,000 direct and indirect skilled jobs in the region. With this announcement, Tata Electronics enters the global semiconductor industry.
"Tata Electronics (a wholly owned subsidiary of Tata Sons Pvt Ltd) in partnership with Powerchip Semiconductor Manufacturing Corporation (PSMC) will build India's first AI-enabled state-of-the-art Fab. This Fab will have manufacturing capacity of up to 50,000 wafers per month and will include next-generation factory automation capabilities deploying data analytics and machine learning to achieve industry-best factory efficiency. The new semiconductor Fab will manufacture chips for applications such as power management IC, display drivers, microcontrollers (MCU) and high-performance computing logic, addressing the growing demand in markets such as automotive, computing and data storage, wireless communication and artificial intelligence," said the statement.
N Chandrasekaran, Chairman, Tata Sons, had announced Tata Group's decision to build a semiconductor fab in Dholera in the 20th Vibrant Gujarat Summit in January 2024. Commenting on the planned semiconductor Fab, he said, "Tata Group has a tradition of pioneering many sectors in the country, and we are confident that our entry in semiconductor fabrication will add to this legacy."
Emphasising the significance of this strategic step, Dr Randhir Thakur, CEO & MD, Tata Electronics, said, "This marks a beginning of a new era for India. Tata Electronics is proud to play a prominent role in strengthening the global semiconductor ecosystem. Our partnership with PSMC provides access to a broad technology portfolio in leading edge and mature nodes including 28nm, 40nm, 55nm, 90nm & 110nm and also collaboration for high volume manufacturing. We are confident that the upcoming Fab will support our ambitions of 'Make in India, For the World'. We will be able to serve our global customers' requirements for supply chain resilience and meet the growing domestic demand."
PSMC, which is one of Taiwan's leading pure-play foundry companies with capabilities across logic and memory technologies, will provide access to leading-edge and mature technologies. Dr. Frank Huang, Chairman, PSMC said, "Tata Group is one of the most established and well-respected names in India and globally. We are very excited to enter in partnership with Tata group, that I believe will script a new era in the global semiconductor industry. Semiconductor industry presents a large and growing opportunity, and India is uniquely placed to capture this opportunity. On one end, India has a large and growing domestic demand and on the other end global customers are looking at India for supply chain resilience. There could not have been better time for India to make its entry into semiconductor manufacturing industry. This partnership has the potential to redefine the contours of global semiconductor manufacturing and we are looking forward to collaboration with Tata Electronics."
With AI-led digitisation of every aspect of human existence, semiconductors will be the most critical building block. By 2030, the global semiconductor industry is expected to grow to US$ 1 trillion and Indian semiconductor demand is expected to cross US$110bn. "India's entry in the semiconductor manufacturing will significantly de-risk global supply chains and will make India a very important player in the global semiconductor industry," said the statement.
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