Construction of the Dholera fab is already underway, and it’s being designed to process up to 50,000 wafers per month.
Earlier last month, we posted about India’s first Aatmanirbhar semiconductor chip, now we’re back with the story of India’s first chip fab. Tata Electronics has broken ground on India’s first indigenous chip fabrication plant, located in Dholera, Gujarat. With an investment of ₹91,000 crore (roughly $11 billion), this fab won’t just assemble chips, it will build them from scratch, using raw silicon wafers and advanced photolithography. That makes it the first project in India to take on the full-scale manufacturing challenge.
Until now, we’ve relied on fabs in Taiwan, South Korea, and the U.S. to power everything from smartphones to satellites. But with Tata bringing in Taiwanese know-how (via Powerchip Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp) and Japanese equipment (from Tokyo Electron), we’re finally creating a full-stack semiconductor ecosystem, on Indian soil. This isn’t just a factory. It’s a signal. India’s tech infrastructure is no longer just about importing innovation, it’s about fabricating the future, one wafer at a time.
Infrastructure meets Intent at Dholera
Construction of the Dholera fab is already underway, and it’s being designed for real volume. The facility will process up to 50,000 wafers per month, spanning nodes like 28 nm, 40 nm, and even older ones like 90 nm, all of which are still in demand for power chips, automotive MCUs, and industrial-grade applications. And this isn’t just a building in isolation.
Gujarat is preparing 1,500 housing units near the site for workers, engineers, and suppliers. It’s being treated like a full ecosystem, not just a project. Tata’s partnership with Powerchip Semiconductor (PSMC) gives them access to proven IP and fab expertise, and the deal with Tokyo Electron Limited (TEL) ensures the machines inside will be world-class. If it stays on schedule, the plant will start rolling out sample chips by late 2025.
This isn’t Make in India as a slogan, it’s Make in India as a machine, humming quietly in the desert.
What sets this fab apart isn’t just the location or investment, it’s that Tata is building India’s first AI-powered fab. From yield optimization to predictive maintenance, machine learning will run through the system like current through silicon. It’s also the first serious attempt to build semiconductors for high-demand
domains like automotive, 5G, AI, and power electronics.
While most global fabs are swamped with orders for high-end chips, India can corner the market on mature-node, mid-performance chips, the kind that power appliances, cars, telecom gear, and industrial automation. More importantly, this fab is just the beginning. Tata plans to build two more fabs in Gujarat over the next five to seven years. There’s also the OSAT (assembly and testing) facility in Jagiroad, Assam, aimed at packaging chips for export and domestic use.
Together, they form a rare thing in the chip world: a vertically integrated semiconductor chain, from raw wafers to ready-to-ship dies, made and tested in India.
From Dependency to Deployment
For decades, India has been caught in a loop: brilliant engineers, a booming tech industry, but no domestic fab to anchor it all. That gap meant we had to rely on fabs in Taiwan, Korea, or the US, which came with supply risks, geopolitical dependence, and eye-watering import bills. Tata’s Dholera fab marks a clear shift from that pattern. This isn’t a pilot or a lab-scale trial. It’s a full production fab with global-grade ambition.
Even Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw confirmed that chips could roll out by September or October 2025, depending on how early the supply chain clicks into place. For India’s AI and telecom ambitions, and even for its military-grade electronics, that timing could prove crucial. Especially as other fabs, like HCL-Foxconn’s facility in Uttar Pradesh, ramp up in parallel, the idea of an Indian-made chip inside Indian tech suddenly doesn’t sound that far off.
The government’s ₹76,000 crore Semicon India Program has laid the groundwork for this moment. Tata’s fab is the first fruit of that policy push, but it won’t be the last. Alongside the Assam packaging unit and upcoming fabs, India is positioning itself not just as a chip consumer but as a genuine producer. The skill pipeline, from IITs to industrial training hubs, is being geared up to support long-term talent needs.
Global players are watching. Supply chains are already circling. And countries like the U.S., which are pouring billions into reshoring chip capacity, may soon see India not as a dependent buyer but a supply-side ally. That’s the real impact of this fab. It’s not about beating Taiwan or Intel or TSMC, it’s about finally joining the club. On our terms, in our terrain.
Aatmanirbhar Silicon
The launch of Tata’s semiconductor fab is more than a manufacturing win, it’s a strategic pivot. India is no longer content being a coding powerhouse or a market for imported hardware. With Dholera, we’ve taken the first real step toward owning the silicon stack. And unlike earlier attempts that got stuck in red tape or tech gaps, this one’s got momentum: government backing, global partners, and serious capital.
The numbers are eye-popping, ₹91,000 crore for the fab, ₹27,000 crore more for the Assam OSAT plant, and at least two more fabs to come. But beyond the billions, this is about something deeper: sovereignty, scale, and staying power.
Whether you’re looking at telecom, EVs, AI, or defence, chips are no longer just components, they’re currency. And finally, India’s printing its own. Not on paper. On silicon.
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