New Delhi, 21st July 2023: The governments of India and Japan have agreed to collaborate on the establishment of a semiconductor ecosystem.
Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said in a press release in New Delhi on Thursday, “Japan and India have signed a Memorandum of Understanding for semiconductor manufacturing, research, design, talent development, and supply chain resilience.”
India and Japan have held many rounds of talks, and the two nations would soon establish a “implementation organisation to discuss industry-to-industry and government-to-government collaboration,” he said.
Rapidus Corp., a semiconductor manufacturer founded with the help of eight major Japanese corporations, including SoftBank, Sony, and Toyota, will play a significant role in this MoU, according to Vaishnaw.
He said, “Rapidus will be playing a role in focusing on the full value chain, instead of what other countries are doing, which is emphasising only on fabrication. With Japan, we usually have detailed discussions and once the agreement is signed, it goes on for years.”
Japan has traditionally held the lead in the semiconductor business, according to Vaishnaw. “They were at the forefront of silicon wafer and ingot manufacturing.”
Lead can also be found in raw materials such as chemicals and gases. “Tokyo Electron is a big company in equipment manufacturing, especially lenses,” he explained, referring to the reasoning behind a deal with Japan.
Expressing his faith in India Vaishnaw further said, “India can be pitched as a raw material supplier for semiconductors. Dahej in Gujarat can be a raw material supplier hub for global corporations.”
