The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bhubaneswar will set up a research lab with an investment of Rs 45 crore in the SiCSem semiconductor unit, Union Information and Technology Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw announced on Tuesday, August 12, as reported by The Economic Times. 

What is the SiCSem semiconductor unit?

SiCSem, which has approval to build a Rs 2,066-crore semiconductor plant, is partnering with UK-based Clas-SiC Wafer Fab to establish an integrated facility for Silicon Carbide (SiC) based compound semiconductors at Info Valley, Bhubaneswar. 

This will be India’s first commercial compound fab, with an annual capacity of 60,000 wafers and packaging capacity of 96 million units. Products will have applications in defence, electric vehicles, railways, data centres, and renewable energy.

Boost to semiconductor mission

Vaishnaw said global firms like Intel and Lockheed Martin have invested in the company, calling the plant “the most advanced plant in the world.” The Centre has approved four new semiconductor projects worth Rs 4,600 crore under the India Semiconductor Mission (ISM), expected to generate over 2,000 skilled jobs. 

Two projects will be located in Odisha, one in Punjab and one in Andhra Pradesh, taking ISM’s portfolio to 10 projects across six states with total investments of Rs 1.6 lakh crore. Construction work on all approved plants is set to begin soon.