Dholera semiconductor plant to roll out first chip by end of 2026: Vaishnaw

PM Modi virtually laid the foundation of three chip plants through video conferencing during the function and said that these projects will help India become a semiconductor global hub

The first made-in-India chips will roll out from the Tata Electronics plant at Dholera, in Gujarat towards the end of 2026, said Union Minister for Railways, Communication, Electronics and Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw, at the groundbreaking ceremony of Tata Electronics and CG Power’s chip plant on Wednesday.

“The first chip from Dholera will be out in December 2026. The chip from Micron’s plant will be out by December 2024. India will be among the top five chip ecosystems in the world by 2029,” said Vaishnaw at the event.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi virtually laid the foundation of three semiconductor plants during the function. These projects, constructed at a total cost of Rs 1.25 trillion, are poised to elevate India into a global semiconductor hub, as stated by Modi. These projects were cleared by the Union Cabinet last month as part of India's Rs 76,000 crore capital expenditure incentive scheme for the semiconductor sector.

 

“The 21st century is electronically driven and it can't be imagined without semiconductor chips. During the first three industrial revolutions, India was lagging due to various reasons, but the country is moving with confidence towards achieving milestones in Industry 4.0,” he further said.

These plants are a crucial step being taken by India to make its entry into the global semiconductor map. Other than these three plants, US-based Micron too is setting up a packaging plant in Sanand worth $2.75 billion.

The three chip plants include the first semiconductor plant by Tata Electronics in collaboration with Taiwan’s PSMC, CG Power in partnership with Renesas Electricals Corporation, Japan, and Stars Microelectronics of Thailand at Sanand and Tata Semiconductor Assembly and Test (TSAT) plant in Morigaon, Assam.

“These three semiconductor facilities will drive economic growth and foster innovation in the country,” said the PM.

 

Tata Electronics’ Dholera plant will produce 50,000 wafers per month and create employment opportunities for 50,000, both directly and indirectly. The plant will see a total investment of Rs 91,000 crore, with the Centre contributing 50 per cent of the capex.

Meanwhile, the Sanand OSAT facility will be set up by CG Power and Industrial Solutions Limited under the Modified Scheme for Semiconductor Assembly, Testing, Marking and Packaging (ATMP), with a total investment of Rs 7,500 crore.

The plant will have a capacity for 15 million chips per day and will cater to sectors such as consumer, industrial, automotive, and power applications.

The other OSAT unit by Tata Electronics in Morigaon, will be developed with an investment of Rs 27,000 crore and will create employment opportunity of 20,000-22,000. “The plant will cater to electric vehicles, automotive, mobile phones, power devices,” said Vaishnaw.

“India will soon have a capacity of producing 1.8 lakh wafers per month with the approval of Israel’s Tower Semiconductor proposal and the modernisation of government-owned Semiconductor Lab Mohali,” said Union Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar on Wednesday.

All three projects are being incentivised under the India Semiconductor Mission, which has an outlay of Rs 76,000 crore.

 

Chandrasekhar also hinted at the possibility of introducing a separate incentive program for supporting ancillary units to the semiconductor plants.

Taking the example of the Micron plant, he said, “A few ancillary units have sought subsidies from the government, but since these are not covered under the existing schemes, the Ministry might explore another support policy when the second round of semiconductor investments are sought.”

“It may require the government to come up with an additional SPECS policy to provide support in the future,” he said.

The groundbreaking ceremony in Dholera was attended by the Chief Minister of Gujarat Bhupendra Patel, Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, Chief Minister of Assam Himanta Biswa Sharma, Tata Group Chairperson N Chandrasekaran, among more than 1,000 attendees from the central government, state government, and the industry.

More than 100,000 university students across the state of Gujarat joined the event virtually using video conferencing, along with other attendees from different institutions across the country.