India’s Tata Group is exploring partnerships with at least one of two large Taiwan-based semiconductor manufacturers to set up a chip fabrication unit in the western state of Gujarat, industry sources said on Tuesday, February 20.
Though no official confirmation has been available from any company in Tata Group, industry sources said that talks had been initiated with Powerchip Semiconductor Manufacturing Corporation (PSMC) and UMC Group, both Taiwan-based, for the proposed joint venture.
The Indian conglomerate aims to manufacture mature nodes of 65 nm (nanometer) before moving to 48 nm and then to 28 nm, the sources said.
In January, while addressing an investment summit in Gujarat, Tata Sons chairman N Chandrasekaran said the group will announce a “huge semiconductor fab” in Dholera, Gujarat, that would begin operations in 2024. This would make it the first major chipmaking plant to be set up by an Indian company.
