Vedanta Ties Up With Foxconn To Manufacture Semiconductors In India

Vedanta will hold the majority equity in the JV, while Foxconn will be the minority shareholder, according to the memorandum of understanding

Vedanta Chairman Anil Agarwal will be the chairman of the joint venture. Image: Getty

New Delhi: Anil Agarwal-led Vedanta has said it has signed a deal with Foxconn, electronics manufacturing services giant, to form a joint venture (JV) for manufacturing semiconductors in the country.

In December 2021, the central government had cleared a performance-linked incentive (PLI) scheme for semiconductor and display board production in the country targeting an investment of Rs 76,000 crore over the next five to six years. India Semiconductor Mission (ISM) was also announced recently with the aim to attract large investments for manufacturing facilities in the midst of a global chip crisis.

Vedanta, the Indian conglomerate, becomes the first company to make the announcement to invest in semiconductor manufacturing after the government announced the programme to boost electronic chip and display ecosystem in the country.

This is Vedanta’s second attempt to enter the semiconductor space after its earlier plans to set up a display unit with about Rs 60,000 crore investment could not take off.

The statement by the company said, “According to the MoU (memorandum of understanding) signed between the two companies, Vedanta will hold the majority equity in the JV, while Foxconn will be the minority shareholder.” It said that Vedanta Chairman Anil Agarwal will be the chairman of the joint venture.

According to the statement, the targeted project plans to invest in manufacturing semiconductors. “It will provide a significant boost to domestic manufacturing of electronics in India. Discussions are currently ongoing with a few state governments to finalise the location of the plant."

The collaboration between Vedanta and Foxconn follows the government’s recent policy announcement for electronics manufacturing and PLI scheme for incentivising organisations to contribute towards the development of this sector. “This will be the first joint venture in the electronics manufacturing space after the announcement of the policy,” the statement added.