The first made-in-India memory chip will roll out from the Micron plant in Gujarat by the end of the year due to a successful agreement the state government struck with South Korean firm Simmtech. The company which produces high-layer printed circuit boards for semiconductors would establish operations to assist Micron’s semiconductor plant in Gujarat, union minister Ashwini Vaishnaw informed at a press conference held on the second day of the Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit 2024 on 11th January.
According to the MoU (memorandum of understanding), Simmtech will collaborate in Micron’s semiconductor plant in Gujarat’s Sanand by setting up operations and investing more than Rs 1,250 crore. According to the minister, the plant’s installation will begin in March.
Ashwini Vaishnaw announced, “I’d like to thank Micron’s team for the passion with which they have started the construction work, the pace they have set for talent development, and the meticulous planning they have undertaken. This dedication gives us confidence that, in 2024, the first made-in-India memory chip will be produced at the Micron plant here in Gujarat.”
First 𝐌𝐚𝐝𝐞 𝐈𝐧 𝐈𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐚 Memory Chip will be produced from Micron's plant in Gujarat in 2024: @AshwiniVaishnaw at #VibrantGujaratGlobalSummit @GoI_MeitY @VibrantGujarat #VibrantGujaratSummit2024 #VibrantGujarat2024 pic.twitter.com/Sd6QEhpH8l
— All India Radio News (@airnewsalerts) January 11, 2024
The Electronics & Information Technology Minister informed, “South Korean firm Simmtech Co Ltd has signed an MoU with the Gujarat government to set up a plant near the Micron plant at Sanand. The company is the world’s largest manufacturer of semiconductor substrate,” while addressing media. It has been granted 30 acres at Sanand.
He mentioned, “They will start working in the next three-odd months. This is the second semiconductor plant to be announced in Gujarat. The first semiconductor unit is being set up by Micron Technology. As per schedule, the first chip will be produced from the Sanand factory in December 2024.”
Ashwini Vaishnaw, who holds the portfolio of Railways as well as Communications Minister proclaimed, “The Simmtech plant will come up near Micron’s semiconductor plant that is already being established at Gujarat Industrial Development Corporation’s (GIDC) industrial estate in Sanand. We are very much sure that India will get its first domestically manufactured semiconductor chip in December this year.”
He remarked that Micron’s investment would open doors for India to become a hub for semiconductor development. Meanwhile, Micron and NamTech struck an agreement to foster talent for Micron’s Indian semiconductor business. Over 200 workers have already been hired by the United States company for its Indian operation.
According to him, the Tata Group’s proposed semiconductor fabrication unit at Dholera will be significantly larger than the Micron facility. “The project evaluation is under progress and once it is completed the investment figures can be revealed,” he stated and noted that Tata will enlist technical collaborators for the undertaking. He disclosed that Namtech would provide technicians for Gujarat’s semiconductor industry, and (Indian Institutes of Technology) IIT Gandhinagar will become the premier location for semiconductor research and development.
He added that government and business leaders had joined forces to create a workforce prepared for the future and highlighted, “I would request Micron to collaborate with IIT Gandhinagar to set up a centre of excellence, which will help in building a robust talent pipeline.”
Simmtech CEO Jeffrey Chun declared during the opening session of the significant event on 10the January that the business was prepared to make investments in India. More than 1,000 direct and indirect job opportunities are anticipated to be created in the state as a result of the initiative.
Simmtech was permitted to install a facility near Micron’s unit in Sanand last year in September. The bureaucrat-turned-minister had stated that this is the first of several supply partners that Simmtech will bring to India in the upcoming months and years as it constructs its first assembly, testing, marking and packaging (ATMP) unit in the nation in Gujarat. However, he had not released the exact amount of investment Simmtech will use for the manufacturing plant.
The company’s vice president, Gursharan Singh conveyed at the groundbreaking event that Micron Technology would establish a 1.4 million square foot ATMP plant, the first phase of which would start producing packaged chips by December 2024. There will be 500,000 square feet of clean room space at the site. An agreement was struck for Tata Projects to construct the plant.
He added that the plant’s capacity would rely on both local and international demand at the moment and it would feed both domestic and international markets in addition to the local one. He highlighted that the $2.75 billion project’s second phase will start in the second half of the decade but withheld specifics.
In the future, Micron plans to set up four or five of these factories. $1.95 billion in funding from the union and state governments will go toward the new factory, which is expected to create 5,000 direct and 15,000 indirect employment.
