New Delhi: Union minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar said India has progressed significantly in the semiconductor ecosystem and the latest investment proposal by US-based Micron Technology will give a fresh push to the sector, besides creating thousands of job opportunities.


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India kicked off a semiconductor mission in December 2021 to make the country one of the key players in such technology. "In the last 18 months, India has progressed significantly in the semiconductor industry. American companies' announcements will also help promote startups in India. Micron's investment will create 5000 direct jobs. It will create 500 new high-end engineering jobs," Union Minister of State for Electronics and Technology said on Friday.


"Yesterday's announcement has given a signal to the youths of India that in the upcoming decades there will be several opportunities of working with American start-ups and can shape the technology sector," Chandrasekhar said.


On Thursday, hours after Prime Minister Narendra Modi met CEO Sanjay Mehrotra in the US and invited him to boost semiconductor manufacturing in India, global semiconductor major Micron announced plans to build a new assembly and test facility in Gujarat in India with its investment of USD 825 million.


The facility once set up will address demand from both domestic and international markets. Micron said it selected Gujarat due to its manufacturing infrastructure, conducive business environment and a firm talent pipeline in the SANAND Industrial Park (Gujarat Industrial Development Corporation - GIDC). Phased construction of the new assembly and test facility in Gujarat is expected to begin in 2023, Micron said while announcing the investment plans. Phase I with 500,000 square feet space will start to become operational in late 2024.


Micron said it will ramp capacity gradually over time in line with global demand trends. Micron expects Phase 2 of the project, which would include the construction of a facility similar in scale to Phase 1, to start towards the second half of the decade.


Micron will receive 50 per cent fiscal support for the total project cost from the Indian central government and incentives representing 20 per cent of the total project cost from the state of Gujarat. The combined investment by Micron and the two government entities over the course of both phases will be up to USD 2.75 billion," Micron said.


"We are excited about the steps India is taking to develop the local semiconductor ecosystem," said Micron President and CEO Sanjay Mehrotra. "I am grateful to the Indian government and all of the officials involved that made this investment possible. Our new assembly and test location in India will enable Micron to expand our global manufacturing base and better serve our customers in India and around the world," Mehrotra added.