Tata's Dholera Fab to Back Chip Startups' Tape-Outs

• Dholera fab will support Indian startups with 28–90 nm chip tape-outs
• Reduces dependence on overseas fabs like TSMC and GlobalFoundries
• SCL Mohali modernisation underway with Rs 4,500 crore; 24 DLI-backed startups have raised Rs 430 crore

According to Union Electronics and IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw the upcoming semiconductor fabrication plant which Tata Electronics will build in Dholera will strengthen India's domestic chip industry because it will enable local design tape-outs.

The development seeks to enhance operational capabilities at Mohali Semiconductor Laboratory (SCL) which currently uses outdated systems.

The tape-out process in semiconductor development serves as an essential milestone which involves sending the finished chip design to the fabrication plant for prototype chip production and testing activities.

Indian chip startups lack local advanced fabrication facilities which forces them to use overseas fabs from Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company and GlobalFoundries based in the United States. The situation increases operational costs while it restricts organizations from performing comprehensive testing procedures and failure investigations.

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The Dholera fab will manufacture chips with specifications from 28 nm to 90 nm which will work alongside SCL Mohali's current 180 nm production capabilities according to Vaishnaw's statement during his speech at an industry event in New Delhi.

The two facilities together will produce 75 to 80 percent of the most common chips which manufacturers make worldwide within the next two to three years. This development will decrease India's requirement for overseas semiconductor manufacturing plants.

The minister met with 24 chip design firms which the Design Linked Incentive (DLI) scheme selected and 14 of these firms raised about Rs 430 crore through venture funding.

SCL Mohali will undergo three years of modernization which requires a total investment of Rs 4,500 crore to develop facilities that will enable India to achieve its semiconductor goals while establishing a self-sufficient chip production system.