NARASIMHAN KASTHURI
SAN FRANCISCO, JULY 22
Close on the heels of the announcement of the Rs 25,600-crore investment proposal in Tamil Nadu by the Singapore-based IGSS Ventures, a leading player in the semiconductor technology space, Tamil Nadu wants to be a major player in this sector if the recent visit of the State team led by Industry Minister Thangam Thennarasu to Silicon Valley is any indication. The visit was co-ordinated by USISPF (US-India Strategic Partnership Forum).
A pleasure to co-host @TThenarasu and TN delegation along with @USISPForum & @FalconXUS to showcase opportunities for investments ,manufacturing & @StartupTNGOV etc to Silicon Valley entrepreneurs and VCs.@DPIITGoI @CGISFO @MukeshAghi @Guidance_TN @sfbatm @BATSBayArea pic.twitter.com/Ra1YdIiINn
— Dr TV Nagendra Prasad (@nagentv) July 13, 2022
The team had discussions with several existing and prospective businesses here. It is learned that the team also took part in the SemiconWest 2022, a leading conference for the semicon industry in San Francisco. At a dinner hosted by the Consulate General of India and the Tamilspora here, the minister pointed out various incentives and policies offered to attract the sunrise industry in the State. Some companies the team had discussions include big names like Intel and Sanmina, Microsoft and Amazon among others. SemiconWest is a leading industry event attended by more than 200 industry leaders, visionaries and technology experts who presented insights into the latest trends, innovations and developments across the microelectronics supply chain.
- The industrial delegation from Tamil Nadu led by Industries Minister met some top companies, including Amazon and Microsoft, during their visit to the United States.
- Indian semiconductor market was at $ 15 billion in 2020 and is estimated to reach $63 billion by 2026.
- At a dinner hosted by the Consulate General of India and the Tamilspora here, the minister pointed out various incentives and policies offered to attract the sunrise industry in the State
- The newly launched Research & Development Policy 2022 of Tamil Nadu proposes the Tamil Nadu Startup and Innovation Mission (TANSIM) to establish regional start-up hubs in smaller towns and cities.
The team asked the companies to take advantage of the new R&D policy announced recently. The policy aims at increasing the inputs to R&D, including the number of researchers and scientists, increasing the outputs for innovation, such as patents and publications and developing a synergetic innovation ecosystem of research parks, research centers, centers of excellence, and innovation hubs. The newly launched Research & Development Policy 2022 of Tamil Nadu proposes the Tamil Nadu Startup and Innovation Mission (TANSIM) to establish regional start-up hubs in smaller towns and cities.
According to the Guidance, Tamil Nadu has allocated nine strategic sites, including two near Chennai, to house a semiconductor fab that will produce three technology nodes of wafers and an industry ecosystem infrastructure that hosts semiconductor circuit designers, material suppliers, equipment suppliers and outsourced semiconductor assembly and test (OSATs) players.
For the record, the state has asked prospective businesses to take advantage of the Centre’s Rs 76,000-crore product-linked incentive (PLI) scheme for semiconductor manufacturing in India and set up units in Tamil Nadu.
The proposal by IGSS, submitted under India Semiconductor Mission (ISM) is likely to offer direct employment for 1,500 people. The proposed project is to come up near Chennai. Hosur, with close proximity to Bangalore can be an ideal location to attract investment in this sector, a delegate suggested.
The Semicon India program is set up with ₹76,000 crores outlay for the development of the semiconductor and display manufacturing ecosystem, and seeks to provide financial incentives to investors in semiconductors, display manufacturing and design ecosystem. The mission is an independent business division within Digital India Corporation and will serve as the nodal agency for the smooth implementation of the schemes. Five proposals have been received in the first round with a total investment to the tune of $20.5 billion (Rs 1,53,750 crores).
Semiconductors are the building blocks of electronic devices ranging from smartphones and cloud servers to modern cars, industrial automation, critical infrastructure and defence system. Indian semiconductor market was at $ 15 billion in 2020 and is estimated to reach $63 billion by 2026. Semiconductor manufacturing is a complex, capital and technology-intensive process of fabricating semiconductor wafers.
(Narasimhan Kasthuri is a senior journalist based in US. Before moving to US, he had worked with The Hindu Group and The New Indian Express Group and covered tech, industry and corporate sectors.)
