Union Cabinet has paved the way for setting up Micron’s $2.7 billion semiconductor test and packaging unit in Gujarat, sources have confirmed. A formal announcement is expected during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ongoing US visit.
According to sources, approval was given last week. Cabinet approval was required for amount of Production Linked Incentive (PLI) amounting to around ₹11,000 crore.
Such units test and pack semiconductor chips, but do not manufacture them. Micron could procure and package chip for clients at the plant, or other companies could send their chips for testing before shipping.
Also read: Micron nears $1 billion investment in India chip packaging plant
According to the website of the US company, Micron is a world leader in innovative memory solutions that transform how the world uses information. For over 40 years, our company has been instrumental to the world’s most significant technology advancements, delivering optimal memory and storage systems for a broad range of applications, including automotive, mobile, data centre, and client.
The company plans to set up an OSAT (outsourced semiconductor assembly and test)) plant in India which will test and package its product to make it ready for use.
Sources said that this proposal was cleared after the government modified the semiconductor programme and increased the incentives. In the first phase, the government had cleared four OSAT projects which included proposals by Tata Group, Sahasra Semiconductors.
Also read: Micron Technology leases 10.4 lakh square feet office space in Hyderabad
Micron’s plant is estimated to give job to 5,000 people.
Meanwhile, wire agency Reuters reported, quoting US government official, that Micron Technology’s plans come as the White House presses U.S. chip companies to invest in India with talks ongoing about possible further investments.
Biden wants domestic companies to decrease the risks of doing business in China while better integrating the U.S. economy with that of the world’s largest democracy, the report mentioned.
Neither Indian government nor company official has commented on the development.
