Vedanta-Foxconn picks Dholera in Gujarat for Rs 1.54L cr chip plant

AHMEDABAD: A joint venture of Indian conglomerate Vedanta and electronics manufacturing giant Foxconn has finalised the Dholera Special Investment Region near Ahmedabad city of Gujarat for setting up their semiconductor and display manufacturing facility, a senior state government official said on Monday.

In the biggest ever corporate investment in the history of independent India, a joint venture of Vedanta and Foxconn in September last year signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Gujarat government to invest Rs 1,54,000 crore to set up the plant in the state. This will be the first manufacturing facility for semiconductors in India.

At that time, the joint venture company had not disclosed the exact location of the facility.

“After a detailed site analysis in consultation with Gujarat government authorities, the joint venture entity of Vedanta and Foxconn has selected Dholera SIR for setting up their semiconductor and display manufacturing facility. The project is in the advanced stage of evaluation by the government of India,” the official said.

The MoU was signed in September last year in Gandhinagar in the presence of Minister for Railways, Communications, Electronics & Information Technology, Ashwini Vaishnaw.

Both the companies would invest Rs 1,54,000 crore to set up the facility in Gujarat, which would create one lakh job opportunities, Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel had said on the occasion. Patel had also said his government will provide cooperation to set up the facility and to make it a success.

Notably, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, while addressing a poll rally in Bhavnagar in November ahead of the Assembly polls, had given clear indication that the mega semiconductor plant will come up at Dholera SIR, nearly 100 km from Ahmedabad.

This project is likely to get huge subsidies and incentives, like zero stamp duty on land purchase and subsidised water and electricity, under the ‘Gujarat Semiconductor Policy 2022-27’ announced by the state government in July last year.

Gujarat became the first state in the country to have such a dedicated policy for the semiconductor and display fabrication sector, a government official earlier said.

Under this policy, eligible projects will be given 75 per cent subsidy on the purchase of the first 200 acres of land for setting up manufacturing units. The eligible projects will be provided good quality water at the rate of Rs 12 per cubic metre for the first five years.

To encourage investors under the policy, the state government has also announced to reimburse 100 per cent of stamp duty which investors would pay for the first time for taking land on lease, sale or on land transfer.