New Delhi: India and Japan signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on semiconductor development, which will cover design, manufacturing, device research and talent development.
Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnav said that the agreement is an important step towards creating a resilient complete value chain.
“The MoU is on five fronts, namely semiconductor design, manufacturing, device research, talent development and bringing flexibility in the semiconductor supply chain,” Vaishnav said.
He said agreements such as the US-India Initiative on Critical and Emerging Technologies (ICET) and the agreement with Japan provided clear directional support when industries from the respective countries engage in dialogue. He said the government’s strategy is now clearly focused on supporting industries in India, be it collaboration with the US or Japan.
He said discussions are on to sign a similar agreement with Japanese company Rapidus.
He said the semiconductor industry is growing rapidly, has crossed $650 million and is expected to reach $1 billion within the next five to six years. To meet the growing demand, there is a need for an adequate talent pool and significant growth across multiple locations. He said Japan views India as a reliable partner with complementary strengths, making it an ideal cooperation prospect.
Focusing on advanced packing, he predicted that the next level of semiconductor development would involve sophisticated packaging on many levels. The minister said that India’s strength lies in its design capabilities, which have more than 50 designs, making it an attractive destination for semiconductor manufacturing.
He added that India is yet to sign agreements with institutions such as Georgia Tech University, and has already signed agreements with Caldwell University to groom talent for advanced packaging.
Japan’s MoU follows investments from Micron Technology, which recently announced setting up a semiconductor facility in India with an investment of $2.75 billion, and Applied Materials, a collaborative research firm with an investment of $400 million. And is going to set up a development center.
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UPDATE: July 21, 2023, 01:07 AM IST