The semiconductor supply chain is accelerating its globalization strategy. On February 29th, PSMC announced its collaboration with Tata Electronics in India to construct the country’s first 12-inch fab in Dholera, Gujarat. The construction of the fab is expected to commence within this year.

According to Tata’s press release, following the approval from the Indian government for Tata Group and PSMC to establish India’s first fab in Dholera, Gujarat, the investment for the fab is estimated at INR 91,000 crores (roughly USD 11 billion) and will generate over 20,000 direct and indirect skilled jobs in the region . The preliminary plan outlines a monthly production capacity of 50,000 wafers.

Cited from PSMC’s press release, Frank Huang, Chairman of PSMC, pointed out that Tata Sons Group is India’s largest and internationally-renowned company. India not only has the world’s largest population, it also has a huge domestic market. At this critical moment of the global restructuring of high-tech supply chain, the cooperation between PSMC and Tata Sons Group is indeed timely.

Randhir Thakur, CEO of Tata Electronics, stated as follows, “We will be able to serve our global customers’ requirements for supply chain resilience and meet the growing domestic demand.”

As per PSMC’s press release, Tata Electronics plans to produce power management IC, display driver IC as well as microcontrollers and high-performance computing logic at the Dholera 12-inch fab, in order to enter the automotive, computing and data storage, wireless communications, artificial intelligence and other application end markets.

As key countries worldwide continue actively building their own semiconductor supply chains, TSMC has taken the lead in initiating globalization efforts. UMC, through its collaboration with Intel to develop a 12-nanometer process platform, not only advances in process technology but also expands its presence into the United States.

On the other hand, after entering the Japanese market last year, PSMC further declared yesterday its partnership with Tata to establish India’s first 12-inch fab. This marks the first time a Taiwanese semiconductor foundry has entered the Indian semiconductor supply chain.

Read more

• [News] Tata Group Rumored to Invite Taiwanese Businesses to Establish Fabs in India, Possibly Partnering with UMC or PSMC
• [News] Tata Reportedly Partners with Pegatron for iPhone Assembly in India

(Photo credit: PSMC)

According to a report from Bloomberg, sources reveal that Israeli firm Tower Semiconductor has proposed a USD 9 billion investment to establish a plant, while India’s Tata Group has proposed an USD 8 billion fab. Sources further indicate that both proposed locations for these projects are in the state of Gujarat.

Tower Semiconductor plans to establish a plant in India, which is expected to establish a foothold in emerging markets and move past the shadow of the failed Intel deal. While the company’s sales are far behind those of Intel and TSMC, it produces components for major clients like Broadcom and holds a significant position in rapidly growing fields like electric vehicles.

Sources cited in the report say that Tower Semiconductor hopes to expand its facility over the next decade, with the ultimate goal of producing 80,000 wafers per month. If approved by the Indian government, the plant could become India’s first semiconductor facility operated by a major player in the industry.

Previous reports from India’s media outlet, the Economic Times, have also indicated that India’s Tata group may collaborate with Taiwanese semiconductor foundries like UMC or PSMC to establish the first fab in India. Initially, they would produce mature process chips with a planned monthly capacity of 25,000 wafers. If successful, it would mark Taiwan’s semiconductor industry’s first venture into India.

Additionally, Japan’s Renesas Electronics is seeking to collaborate with CG Power and Industrial Solutions, a subsidiary of the Murugappa Group, to establish a chip packaging plant.

Semiconductors have become a significant geopolitical battleground, with the United States, Japan, and China investing heavily in domestic chip capacity. India’s plan to establish itself as a semiconductor manufacturing hub includes attracting overseas chipmakers’ investments to catch up and save on high import costs while bolstering the local smartphone manufacturing industry.

Read more

• [News] Tata Reportedly Partners with Pegatron for iPhone Assembly in India
• [News] Tata Group Rumored to Invite Taiwanese Businesses to Establish Fabs in India, Possibly Partnering with UMC or PSMC

(Photo credit: Tata Group)

As reported by Indian media Economic Times, India’s Tata group may collaborate with Taiwanese semiconductor foundries like UMC or PSMC to establish the first fab in India, initially producing mature process chips with a planned monthly capacity of 25,000 wafers. If successful, it would mark Taiwan’s semiconductor industry’s first venture into India.

The report addresses the recent escalation of geopolitical tensions, which has led to India’s issues in local chip manufacturing. Thus, India is reportedly looking for major foundries to establish fabs in India, given its substantial demand for semiconductors.

Although neither UMC nor PSMC has formally announced investments in India, as per the Economic Times of India, Tata Group may collaborate with Taiwanese foundries like UMC or PSMC to establish a semiconductor fab in Dholera, Gujarat, India.

Initially targeting the 65-nanometer mature process, the aforementioned fab is expected a monthly capacity of 25,000 wafers, with plans for future upgrades to 48-nanometer and 28-nanometer processes, supporting the production of GPUs, consumer electronics, and Internet of Things (IoT) applications in the coming years.

According to sources cited by the Economic Times of India, Tata Group has finalized the details of the land for this factory and groundbreaking may occur soon. However, Tata Group’s entry into the 28-nanometer process may take some time as it needs to ensure sufficient orders for mature processes in the Indian market.

PSMC Chairman Frank Huang revealed in early 2023 that he had received an invitation to assist in setting up a plant in India, but he did not disclose the details or the inviting party at that time.

PSMC has yet to announce any investments in India.

Instead, they have partnered with the Japanese company SBI Holdings, Inc. to establish a joint venture for a 12-inch fab in Japan. This venture will be located in the Second Northern Sendai Central Industrial Park in Ohira Village, Kurokawa District, Miyagi Prefecture. It is planned to produce chips ranging from 28 to 55 nanometers, with an initial monthly capacity of 10,000 wafers and an ultimate goal of 40,000 wafers, focusing on the automotive chip market.

UMC has also been reportedly sending representatives to India for inspections and discussions regarding the opportunity to establish facilities there, as disclosed by Indian media in recent years.

However, UMC has yet to take any action to invest in India. Instead, in 2022, the company initiated its strategy to establish a new 22-nanometer fab in Singapore, with plans for completion by the end of the second quarter of this year and mass production slated to begin in early 2025, with an initial monthly capacity of 20,000 to 30,000 wafers.

UMC and PSMC didn’t comment on the matter on February 20th. “UMC does not comment on market speculations.” a spokesperson for UMC said, cited by Economic Times.

Read more

• [News] Tata Reportedly Partners with Pegatron for iPhone Assembly in India
• [News] iPhone Manufacturing Dominance: One Leader, Two Contenders, One Challenger

(Photo credit: Tata Group)

India’s Tata Group is reportedly in discussions with Taiwanese electronics manufacturer Pegatron to establish a joint venture, with the intention of co-managing the Apple iPhone assembly plant currently under construction in the southern state of Tamil Nadu. The partnership is anticipated to hasten the growth of iPhone production capacity in India.

According to Reuters citing industry sources, Tata, having acquired an iPhone assembly plant in the southern state of Karnataka from the Taiwanese company Wistron in 2023, has officially become part of the iPhone supply chain in India.

On the other hand, the new facility in the city of Hosur, Tamil Nadu, will be Tata’s second iPhone assembly plant in India, featuring 20 production lines, as disclosed by sources cited by Reuters.

Amid rumors that Tata Group in India is deeply engaged in discussions with Pegatron to form a strategic alliance and establish a joint venture, Pegatron did not to respond to market speculations.

Currently, approximately 10% of Apple’s iPhone production capacity in India comes from Pegatron, with the vast majority of capacity originating from Foxconn’s iPhone assembly plant located in Karnataka.

Furthermore, Foxconn has the highest share in Apple’s current new iPhone assembly. Among the four iPhone 15 series models, only certain models like iPhone15 and iPhone15 plus are produced by Tata Group in India.

An industry source has reportedly stated, “Tata cannot build everything from scratch,” He indicated that after Tata establishes a joint venture with Taiwanese firm Pegatron, Pegatron will provide technical and engineering support.

In recent years, Pegatron has been consistently expanding its global footprint, with expansions ongoing in Taiwan, Mexico, Indonesia, India, Vietnam, and other locations.

Regarding its operations in India, Pegatron announced in late October 2023 that it had invested approximately NTD 300 million (roughly USD 9.56 million) to secure leasing rights for factory premises in Tamil Nadu.

In January of this year, the Indian subsidiary announced signing a construction general contracting project to commence electromechanical engineering construction for a new plant, totaling approximately NTD 510 million (roughly USD 16.26 million). According to industry sources, Pegatron’s Indian facilities primarily focus on smartphone production at present.

(Photo credit: Apple)

Recently, as Indian media cited anonymous sources, that the Indian law enforcement agency arrested three executives of Vivo India Company on charges of alleged involvement in a money laundering case.

As per The Times of India, the individuals arrested by the Indian law enforcement agency in this case are Hong Xuquan, the interim CEO of vivo India, along with Harinder Dahiya, the CFO of Vivo India, and the company consultant Hemant Munjal.

The three have been taken into custody under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). Reportedly, an ED spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for a comment. Furthermore, the Vivo employees is said to be appear in court on December 26.

Vivo spokesperson has responded accordingly that, “We are deeply alarmed by the current action of the authorities. The recent arrests demonstrate continued harassment and as such induce an environment of uncertainty amongst the wider industry landscape. We are resolute in using all legal avenues to address and challenge these accusations.”

According to The Times of India, in October of this year, the Indian law enforcement agency arrested four individuals, including Vivo’s chartered accountant Nitin Garg.

The report further states that from 2014 to the present, Vivo India has been allegedly probing suspicious transactions, which were remitted by the company to China from Rs 1.25 lakh crore of receipts from its Indian operations since 2014

“Various Chinese nationals have been traveling across India, including sensitive places of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, in gross violation of Indian visa conditions.” the agency added.

Previously, as per  Hindustan Times, the Indian government banned numerous Chinese apps, accusing them of being “prejudicial to the sovereignty and integrity of India, defence of India, security of the state and public order.” Since June 2020, more than 200 Chinese apps, including popular ones such as TikTok, WeChat, and UC Browser, have been banned.

The government has also stated in its parliament indicating that, Chinese smartphone makers, including Xiaomi, Realme, Oppo, and Vivo, have been found evading taxes to the tune of Rs 9,000 crore in India.

(Photo credit: Vivo)