Following the approval of the proposal of US-based chip-maker Micron to set up a 2.7 billion dollar semiconductor testing and packaging unit by the Government of India, the Gujarat government has signed a pact with the Micron on June 28 worth Rs 22,500 crore to set up an ATMP (assembly, test, marking, and packaging) facility at Sanand city, which comes under Ahmedabad district.
This development came after the meeting of Prime Minister Narendra Modi with Micron CEO Sanjay Mehrotra in the United States. PM Modi was on a state visit last week in the US, where he met various business leaders for increased cooperation across multiple sectors.
During the meeting of Micron with the Gujarat government, both stakeholders signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to establish an assembly and test facility at Sanand GIDC. Sanand GIDC is a highly industrialised zone in Gujarat, home to many national and multinational manufacturing industries.
The MoU was signed between the Secretary of the Department of Science and Technology, Vijay Nehra, and the Senior Vice President of Micron Gursharan Singh. It was signed in the presence of Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel and Union Minister for Railways, Communications, Electronics and Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw. Even Chief Principal Secretary to CM K.Kailashnathan, Chief Secretary Raj Kumar, and office bearers from Micron were present during the MoU signing.
Vice Chairman and Managing Director, GIDC handed over the Offer Cum Allotment (OCA) letter to Micron for the allotment of 93 acres of area within the Sanand GIDC Estate. As per the release by the Gujrat government, Micron will establish Assembly and Test facility, wherein it will focus on transforming wafers into ball grid array (BGA) integrated circuit packages, memory modules and solid-state drives.
Micron is committed to designing and building the facility to meet or exceed leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Gold standards. Additionally, the facility will use advanced water-saving technologies to enable Zero Liquid Discharge (ZLD).
Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel thanked Micron for choosing Gujarat to set up its flagship facility in the semiconductor manufacturing sector. The Chief Minister assured the firm of the full cooperation and support of the State Government and wished them success.
As per the press release, Micron has chosen Gujarat to set up its manufacturing facility considering Gujarat’s robust manufacturing infrastructure, business-friendly environment and availability of a well-planned talent pool along with excellent support from the state government.
Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has termed the signing of the MoU between the Gujarat government and US chip-maker Micron a “historic day for India”. He tweeted, “Historic day for India… Thanks to PM @narendramodi Ji’s comprehensive semiconductor mission”.
Historic day for India…
Thanks to PM @narendramodi Ji’s comprehensive semiconductor mission.MoU signed between Micron and Govt of Gujarat. pic.twitter.com/fF7zVuwAp5
— Ashwini Vaishnaw (@AshwiniVaishnaw) June 28, 2023
Gujarat was the first state in India to announce a dedicated policy for the semiconductor sector.
The Gujarat Semiconductor Policy (2022-27) was launched in September 2022 for the development of a domestic semiconductor manufacturing ecosystem.
Micron is a top semiconductor company in the world and specialises in computer memory products, flash drives etc. This MoU has boosted India Semiconductor Mission. It will boost India’s ambition to become a global electronics manufacturing and design hub. In the manufacturing of modern electronics, semiconductors are critical components in it. From autos and medical equipment to smartphones and laptops, they are utilised in various products to make integrated circuits, memory modules, and microprocessors in these products.
