CORPORATE

ISMC lines up $3 billion for a semiconductor plant in Karnataka

International semiconductor consortium ISMC would invest $3 billion in Karnataka to set up a chip-making plant, the State government said on Sunday. 

ISMC is a joint venture between Abu Dhabi-based Next Orbit Ventures and Israel’s Tower Semiconductor. US chip giant Intel Corp has announced plans to acquire Tower. 

India’s first semiconductor fabrication unit was expected to generate more than 1,500 direct jobs and 10,000 indirect jobs, the State's investment promotion division said in a tweet. 

ISMC and conglomerate Vedanta have applied for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s $10-billion incentive plan to push companies to set up semiconductor and display operations in India, the government's next big bet on electronics manufacturing. 

Vedanta told the Reuters on Saturday that it was in “advanced talks” with Gujarat, Maharashtra and Telangana to choose a site by mid-May. It has a planned an investment outlay of $20 billion for its semiconductor and display push. 

Mr Modi and his IT ministers outlined plans on Friday for investment incentives in the sector, saying that they wanted India to become a key player in a global chip market, dominated by manufacturers in Taiwan and a few other countries. 

India’s semiconductor market is forecast to grow to $63 billion by 2026 from $15 billion in 2020, according to the government. 

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