The Cabinet on Monday approved the proposal of Kaynes Semicon Pvt Ltd to setup a semiconductor unit in Sanand, Gujarat with an investment of ₹3,300 crore and the facility will have a capacity of 60-lakh chips per day.
“The chips produced in this unit will cater to applications which include segments such as industrial, automotive, electric vehicles, consumer electronics, telecom and mobile phones,” the government said.
Last week, businessline had reported that the government may approve fresh applications for the semiconductor manufacturing and its related components, soon.
New projects on cards
The government had halted the processes due to the elections in the recent months. Sources also added that some new projects would also be announced in the upcoming Semicon India to be held between September 11 and 13, which will be inaugurated by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The programme for development of semiconductors and display manufacturing ecosystem in India was notified on December 21, 2021 with a total outlay of ₹76,000 crore. In June, 2023, the Cabinet had approved the first proposal for setting up a semiconductor unit in Sanand, Gujarat.
And, in February this year, three more semiconductor units were approved. Tata Electronics is setting up a semiconductor fab in Dholera, Gujarat and one semiconductor unit in Morigaon, Assam. Similarly, CG Power is setting up one semiconductor unit in Sanand, Gujarat.
Construction of all four semiconductor units is progressing at a rapid pace and a robust semiconductor ecosystem is emerging near the units. These four units will bring an investment of almost ₹1.5 lakh crore. The cumulative capacity of these units is about seven-crore chips per day, said a government statement.
Addressing reporters after the Cabinet meeting, Ashwini Vaishnaw, Minister of IT, said that a complete semiconductor ecosystem is coming up in India under the India Semiconductor Mission, and promised that the country will take a long-term view of this “foundational” sector and increase the outlay, as needed.
He said that the progress of Tata’s fab, a complex project, has been “very good”, and added that land has been allocated, and geotechnical investigations are done.
1O-year programme
“The Semicon mission is a programme for 10 years minimum...this industry will be crucial for the country’s growth for India’s industrial production...we have a large automobile industry, we have a very large electronics manufacturing industry coming up in our country. A large number of appliances are now made in India,” Vaishnaw said adding that the success of ‘Make-in-India’ will be scripted on foundational industries like semiconductors.