India approves HCL-Foxconn joint venture semiconductor unit
FILE PHOTO: The logo of Foxconn, the trading name of Hon Hai Precision Industry, is seen on top of the company's headquarters in New Taipei City, Taiwan March 29, 2016. REUTERS/Tyrone Siu/File photo
NEW DELHI: India's cabinet has approved a new semiconductor plant, a joint venture between HCL Group and Taiwan's Foxconn, costing US$435 million, information minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said on Wednesday (May 14).
The plant, which will be located near the Jewar airport in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, is designed for a capacity of 20,000 wafers per month and can produce 36 million display driver chips, Vaishnaw said at a cabinet briefing in New Delhi.
The facility, which is the sixth plant approved under the India Semiconductor Mission, will begin commercial production in 2027, he added.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has made chipmaking a top priority for India's economic strategy to boost its role in global electronics manufacturing, but the country currently has no operational chipmaking facility.
Earlier this month, Reuters reported that Indian billionaire Gautam Adani's group paused discussions with Israel's Tower Semiconductor for a US$10 billion chip project after an internal review raised uncertainties around commercial demand.
The Maharashtra state government had initially announced approval for the Adani-Tower venture in September, which was expected to produce 80,000 wafers monthly and create 5,000 jobs.
In 2023, Foxconn's proposed US$19.5 billion joint venture with Indian conglomerate Vedanta collapsed amid Indian government concerns over escalating project costs and delays in approving incentives.
Despite setbacks, other chip projects remain under development, including a US$11 billion chip manufacturing and testing facility by the Tata Group and a US$2.7 billion chip packaging plant by US-based Micron.
($1 = 85.2500 Indian rupees)
