Foxconn-Vedanta to open India’s first semiconductor factory in Dholera

A joint venture of Indian conglomerate Vedanta and electronics manufacturing giant Foxconn has finalized the special investment region of Dholera near the city of Ahmedabad in Gujarat for the establishment of its semiconductor manufacturing plant and screens, a senior state government official said Monday.

In the biggest corporate investment ever in the history of independent India, a joint venture of Vedanta and Foxconn in September last year signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the government of Gujarat to invest Rs. 1,54,000 crore to set up the plant in the state. It will be the first semiconductor manufacturing facility in India.

At that time, the joint venture had not disclosed the exact location of the facility.

“After a detailed site analysis in consultation with Gujarat government authorities, the joint venture of Vedanta and Foxconn has selected Dholera SIR for the establishment of its semiconductor and display manufacturing plant. The project is at a advanced stage of review by the Indian government,” the official said.

The MoU was signed last September in Gandhinagar in the presence of the Minister of Railways, Communications, Electronics and Information Technology, Ashwini Vaishnaw.

The two companies would invest Rs. 1.54,000 crore to set up the facility in Gujarat which would create employment opportunities of one lakh, Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel had said on the occasion. . Patel had also said his government would provide cooperation to set up the facility and make it a success.

Notably, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, while addressing a campaign rally in Bhavnagar in November ahead of the assembly elections, made it clear that the mega semiconductor factory would see the light of day at Dholera SIR, in almost 100 km from Ahmedabad.

This project is likely to get huge subsidies and incentives, like zero stamp duty on the purchase of land and subsidized water and electricity, under the “Semiconductor Policy of the Gujarat 2022-27” announced by the state government in July last year.

Gujarat has become the first state in the country to have such a dedicated policy for the semiconductor and display manufacturing sector, a government official said earlier.

Under this policy, eligible projects will receive a 75% subsidy on the purchase of the first 200 acres of land for the installation of manufacturing units. Eligible projects will receive good quality water at the rate of Rs. 12 per cubic meter for the first five years.

To encourage investors under this policy, the state government also announced the 100% refund of stamp duty that investors would pay for the first time to take land for lease, sale or transfer of lands.