
Foxconn Indian fab venture selects Gujurat for location.
Vedanta Group, in a joint venture with Foxconn, has signed two agreements with the Government of Gujarat to set up a wafer fab, a semiconductor assembly and test unit, and display factory.
Vedanta, a metals and mining conglomerate, agreed to form the JV with Taiwan’s Hon Hai Technology Group (Foxconn), back in February 2022 (see Foxconn heads to India for JV wafer fab). Vedanta has a presence in electronics and technology business through group companies Avanstrate Inc. and Sterlite Technologies.
Foxconn is best known as the electronic manufacturing services contractor that manufactures iPhones for Apple. However, Apple is moving into electric vehicle manufacture and semiconductor manufacture in its own right.
The deal will support Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision for semiconductor manufacturing in India (see India details wafer fab subsidy scheme favoring 28nm). This initiative aims to establish India as chip maker and reduces its import-export deficit in the critical area of semiconductors and displays.
The project envisages a total investment of US$20 billion and an employment potential of around 100,000 people. Vedanta will hold 60 percent of the equity in the JV while Foxconn will own 40 percent. The JV will look at setting up a semiconductor manufacturing plant in the next two years.
28nm nodes
Vedanta said the proposed wafer fab would operate on chip manufacturing nodes around 28nm and the liquid crystal display manufacturing unit will produce Generation 8 displays catering to small, medium and large applications.
Vedanta chairman Anil Agarwal, said: “We are delighted to announce that Gujarat will be the location for our display and semiconductor fab ventures. The state is well known globally for being a manufacturing hub and I hope that India’s upcoming, cutting-edge electronics ecosystem will thrive, with every state benefitting to develop their electronic manufacturing hubs.”
The Minister for Electronics and Information Technology, Shri Ashwini Vaishnav, said: “The project is in line with Hon. Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s vision for achieving self-reliance in the field of semiconductor manufacturing. I congratulate Vedanta and Foxconn for taking this initiative and bringing the semiconductor plant to India.”
The Indian semiconductor market was valued at $27.2 billion in 2021 and is expected to grow at a healthy CAGR of nearly 19% to reach $64 billion in 2026.
After the Covid-19 pandemic India said it would provide $10 billion over several years to support the creation of about 20 manufacturing facilities. However, the initiative reportedly been criticized for failing to attract global leaders such as TMSC, Samsung or Intel. So far the plan has attracted Foxconn as an inward investor and Tower Semiconductor that will provide expertise within a joint venture called India Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Ltd. (ISMC).
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