Tag: vedanta

Foxconn Chairman Praises Ecosystem for Semiconductor Chips in India

The ecosystem for semiconductor chips in India is for the “very brave”, Foxconn Chairman Young Liu said on Friday as he expressed optimism about the country’s semiconductor roadmap during the second edition of SemiconIndia in Gandhinagar. 

Earlier this month, Taiwan-based Foxconn, which also supplies for smartphone giant Apple, withdrew from a $19.5 billion (nearly Rs. 1,60,300 crore) semiconductor joint venture with Vedanta as the venture struggled to get a technology partner to make chips that are used in mobile phones to refrigerators and cars.

Foxconn is the world’s largest contract electronics maker.

Addressing SemiconIndia on Friday, Liu said “The ecosystem for chips in India is for the very brave. Every experience only positions companies stronger going forward.” Notably, the joint venture between Foxconn and Vedanta was signed in February 2022, after which the JV signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Gujarat government to invest Rs. 1,54,000 crore to set up a semiconductor plant in the state.

Had it not been called off by Foxconn, the JV would have resulted in independent India’s biggest ever corporate investment and given shape to the country’s first manufacturing facility for semiconductors.

American memory maker Micron Technology subsequently is set to become India’s first semiconductor assembly, announcement for which was made in June this year.

Liu affirmed that Taiwan will be the “most trusted and reliable partner” for India.

“Prime Minister Narendra Modi once mentioned to me that IT stands for India and Taiwan. Honourable Prime Minister, Taiwan is, and will be, your most trusted and reliable partner. Let’s do this together!,” he said.

Liu also spoke about Taiwan’s “buffalo spirit”, and how the same can be applied to India for semiconductor development.

“India has said its government has a high say-do ratio. This kind of trust is important because India’s semiconductor development is just starting.” He added that several people with varying expertise need to work and overcome challenges together.

Foxconn had earlier said it has been actively reviewing landscape for optimal partners after withdrawing from the semiconductor joint-venture project with Vedanta.

“Foxconn is working toward submitting an application related to Modified Programme for Semiconductors and Display Fab Ecosystem. We have been actively reviewing the landscape for optimal partners,” Foxconn had said in a statement.

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iPhone Assembler Foxconn in Talks With TSMC and TMH to Set Up Semiconductor Fabrication Units in India: Report

Foxconn is in talks with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) and Japan’s TMH Group for technology and joint venture partnerships to start semiconductor fabrication units in India, the Economic Times reported on Friday.

Meanwhile, the Gujarat government is holding talks with Foxconn over a semiconductor plant, a top government official told Reuters, days after the Taiwanese giant broke off a joint-venture plan with Vedanta.

“We are in touch with multiple prospective investors, including Foxconn … Gujarat is uniquely positioned to attract top chipmakers,” said Vijay Nehra, secretary of the science and technology department in Gujarat. Foxconn this week exited its project with Vedanta, which was also planned for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s home state of Gujarat, citing issues such as slow progress.

The breakup of the JV was a setback for PM Modi’s vision to establish India as a semiconductor manufacturing hub. However, Foxconn said later it would apply for India chip incentives on its own and was exploring new partners. Foxconn did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Reuters is first to report its talks with Gujarat. PM Modi wants to make chipmaking a top priority in pursuit of a “new era” in electronics manufacturing, but his plan has so far floundered.

Three companies applied for incentives last year – the Vedanta-Foxconn JV, Singapore-based IGSS Ventures and global consortium ISMC, which counts Tower Semiconductor as a tech partner — but so far no deal has been sealed.

Explaining the Vedanta split on Tuesday, Foxconn said “there was recognition from both sides that the project was not moving fast enough” and there were other “challenging gaps we were not able to smoothly overcome”, without giving more details.

V. Lee, Foxconn’s representative in India, wrote on LinkedIn: “Sometimes, you will fly higher when in solo.” Its talks with Gujarat come weeks after Micron said it will invest up to $825 million (nearly Rs. 6,800 crore) in a semiconductor testing and packaging facility in the state.

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Gujarat in Talks With Foxconn for Semiconductor Plant Days After Vedanta JV Falls Apart

India’s Gujarat state is holding talks with Foxconn over a semiconductor plant, a top government official told Reuters, days after the Taiwanese giant broke off a joint-venture plan with India’s Vedanta.

“We are in touch with multiple prospective investors, including Foxconn … Gujarat is uniquely positioned to attract top chipmakers,” said Vijay Nehra, secretary of the science and technology department in Gujarat. 

Foxconn this week exited its project with Vedanta, which was also planned for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s home state of Gujarat, citing issues such as slow progress. 

The breakup of the JV was a setback for Modi’s vision to establish India as a semiconductor manufacturing hub. However, Foxconn said later it would apply for India chip incentives on its own and was exploring new partners. 

Foxconn did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Reuters is first to report its talks with Gujarat.

Modi wants to make chipmaking a top priority in pursuit of a “new era” in electronics manufacturing, but his plan has so far floundered.

Three companies applied for incentives last year – the Vedanta-Foxconn JV, Singapore-based IGSS Ventures and global consortium ISMC, which counts Tower Semiconductor as a tech partner — but so far no deal has been sealed.

Explaining the Vedanta split on Tuesday, Foxconn said “there was recognition from both sides that the project was not moving fast enough” and there were other “challenging gaps we were not able to smoothly overcome”, without giving more details.

V. Lee, Foxconn’s representative in India, wrote on LinkedIn: “Sometimes, you will fly higher when in solo.”

Its talks with Gujarat come weeks after Micron Technology said it will invest up to $825 million (nearly Rs. 6,800 crore) in a semiconductor testing and packaging facility in the state.

© Thomson Reuters 2023

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Foxconn’s Worries Over Vedanta’s Financials Said to Be Reason Behind Withdrawal From JV

The Indian government and Foxconn had concerns over the financial situation of Vedanta, which led to the Taiwanese company parting ways with Vedanta on a chipmaking joint venture, sources familiar with the information told Reuters.

Indian conglomerate Vedanta’s London-based parent, Vedanta Resources, has been plagued by a rising debt pile.

In a statement to Reuters, Vedanta said its Indian unit, Vedanta, is in “a comfortable financial position” and there was “no basis” to such speculation.

India’s IT ministry did not respond to requests for comment on Tuesday.

Some rating agencies downgraded Vedanta Resources this year amid concerns about the risks of a debt default.

There have been no defaults on debts from the group, Vedanta Chairman Anil Agarwal has said.

Meanwhile, Foxconn said on Tuesday it plans to apply for incentives that India is offering under its semiconductor manufacturing policy, a day after the company parted ways with Vedanta on a $19.5 billion (roughly Rs. 1,60,600 crore) chipmaking joint venture.

“Foxconn is committed to India and sees the country successfully establishing a robust semiconductor manufacturing ecosystem,” the company said.

“Foxconn is working toward submitting an application.”

On Monday, Foxconn withdrew from its semiconductor JV with Indian metals-to-oil conglomerate Vedanta, in a setback to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s chipmaking plans for India.

Foxconn said on Tuesday “there was recognition from both sides that the project was not moving fast enough” and there were other “challenging gaps we were not able to smoothly overcome”, without sharing details.

“This is not a negative,” Foxconn said in a statement.

© Thomson Reuters 2023

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

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Vedanta Assures Investors Are Lined Up as Foxconn Withdraws From $19 Billion Deal

Taiwan’s Foxconn has withdrawn from a semiconductor joint venture with mining baron Anil Agarwal’s Vedanta as the venture struggled to get a technology partner to make chips that are used in mobile phones to refrigerators and cars. 

In a statement, Foxconn, the world’s largest contract electronics maker, said it “has determined it will not move forward on the joint venture with Vedanta.” Agarwal’s metals-to-oil conglomerate responded saying it was “fully committed to its semiconductor fab project and we have lined up other partners to set up India’s first foundry.” It however did not give details of the new partners.

Foxconn, best known for assembling iPhones and other Apple products, and Vedanta last year signed a pact to set up semiconductor and display production plants in Gujarat.

European chipmaker STMicroelectronics was being roped in as a technology partner for the venture but talks were deadlocked.

Most of the world’s chips are manufactured in a handful of countries and India, which expects its semiconductor market to be worth $63 billion (nearly Rs. 5,20,300 crore) by 2026, is a late entrant.

Three applications — one from the Vedanta-Foxconn joint venture, another from a global consortium of ISMC and one from Singapore-based IGSS Ventures — were received in response to the government’s incentive scheme for local manufacture of semiconductors.

The other two applications too haven’t made much progress.

Just last week, Vedanta announced that it will acquire the semiconductor and display glass units from group company Twin Star Technologies.

It is to buy 100 percent of Vedanta Foxconn Semiconductors and Vedanta Displays from Twin Star, a unit of Vedanta’s ultimate parent Volcan Investments.

In a statement on Monday Foxconn said, “In order to explore more diverse development opportunities, according to mutual agreement, Foxconn has determined it will not move forward on the joint venture with Vedanta.” Foxconn said it is “working to remove the Foxconn name from what now is a fully-owned entity of Vedanta”.

“Foxconn has no connection to the entity and efforts to keep its original name will cause confusion for future stakeholders,” Hon Hai Technology Group (Foxconn) said.

The statement said that for over a year, Hon Hai Technology Group (Foxconn) and Vedanta have worked hard to bring a great semiconductor idea to reality. It has been a fruitful experience that can position both companies strongly going forward.

“Foxconn is confident about the direction of India’s semiconductor development. We will continue to strongly support the government’s ‘Make In India’ ambitions and establish a diversity of local partnerships that meet the needs of stakeholders,” it said.

After the withdrawal, Vedanta asserted that it is fully committed to its semiconductor project and has lined up other partners to set up India’s first foundry.

Vedanta said that it has redoubled efforts to fulfill Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision for semiconductors and affirmed that India remains pivotal in repositioning global semiconductor supply chains.

“Vedanta reiterates that it is fully committed to its semiconductor fab project and we have lined up other partners to set up India’s first foundry. We will continue to grow our semiconductor team, and we have the license for production-grade technology for 40 nm from a prominent Integrated Device Manufacturer (IDM),” Vedanta said in a statement.

The company had announced plans to set up its chip plant in Gujarat with an investment of around Rs. 1.5 lakh crore.

“We will shortly acquire a license for production-grade 28 nm as well. Vedanta has redoubled its efforts to fulfill the prime minister’s vision for semiconductors and India remains pivotal in repositioning global semiconductor supply chains,” the statement said.

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Government May Clear Semiconductor Unit Proposals in Next 30-60 Days: MoS IT

The government is likely to start approving proposals to set up electronic chip and display manufacturing plants in the country in next 30-60 days, Minister of State for Electronics and IT Rajeev Chandrasekhar said on Wednesday.

Speaking at IESA Vision Summit, Chandrasekhar said there has been a tremendous progress in the development of the semiconductor ecosystem in the country in the last 8-9 months.

The government has received proposals from five companies for setting up electronic chip and display manufacturing plants with investment of Rs. 1.53 lakh crore.

Vedanta Foxconn JV, IGSS Ventures, ISMC propose to set up electronic chip manufacturing plants with $13.6 billion (nearly Rs. 1,11,800) investment and have sought support of $5.6 billion (nearly Rs. 46,000 crore) from the Centre under the Rs. 76,000 crore Semicon India Programme.

“Over the next couple of months, I think over next 30 to 60 days… Government of India and India Semiconductor Mission will be rolling out those proposals that have been scrutinized and that have passed the investment,” Chandrasekhar said in his virtual address at the summit.

He said a great deal of interest is there in the industry and there are several proposals ranging from investment in wafer fabrication plants to silicon compounds to packaging and testing.

“State governments have shown some tremendous amount of alacrity. State governments like Gujarat, Karnataka have shown tremendous proactive response to looking at this very new opportunity, an opportunity for growth, and job creation, investments and innovation,” Chandrasekhar said.

Vedanta Foxconn JV has announced plans to set up an electronic chip manufacturing unit in Gujarat. He said there is significant investment required in the semiconductor space and the government is looking at this sector as a long game.

“This year alone, we will cross over $15 billion (nearly Rs. 1,23,300 crore) of exports where at one point we were having zero exports in 2014. Our target for electronics as an overall sector is $300 billion (nearly Rs. 24,66,800 crore) of manufacturing by 2025 and exports of $120 billion (nearly Rs. 9,86,700 crore),” Chandrasekhar said.

Citing a study, India Electronics and Semiconductor Association (IESA) Chairman Vivek Tyagi said India will consume roughly $27 billion (nearly Rs. 2,22,000) worth semiconductors in 2022.

He said the government’s incentives have given a push to the electronics sector but most of the products are getting assembled in India.

“Once the products get designed here…there will be a different level of value addition that will happen in the country ,” Tyagi said.

He said before the start of semiconductor manufacturing there is a strong case of assembly and testing of electronic chips in India.

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