India Aims to Leverage Semiconductor Industry to Boost Investment and Opportunities
In recent years, there has been a notable surge in the demand for semiconductors in the global market. This can be attributed to the growing adoption of 5G technology in the telecommunications sector, the expanding presence of cryptocurrency mining and Blockchain technology, as well as the increasing digitization trend. As a result, there is a higher Economic Order Quantity (EOQ) requirement for processing units. The rise in the semiconductor market is directly linked to the increasing global demand for consumer electronics. Recognizing these opportunities, the government of India has initiated the ‘SemiconIndia’ program to attract significant investments and establish a semiconductor industry in the country.
The Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA) reports that industry revenue was $40.7 billion in May 2023 worldwide, up 1.7% from April 2023. From the previous year to September 2022, the global semiconductor industry was valued at $500-600 billion, complementing the global electronics industry in terms of value about $3 trillion. India’s semiconductor market is estimated at $23.2 billion and will continue to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 17.10% to reach $80.3 billion by 2028, according to a Strategic Investment Research Unit (SIRU) study.
The Hindu reports, “Setting up a single semiconductor plant requires an investment of $3-7 billion.”
So far, the Indian government has approved Micron Technology Inc’s proposal to set up a semiconductor unit in India with a capital investment of $2.75 billion. In the revised system, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) kept all forms of chip production under 50 percent financial support.
In addition to capital investment, India’s semiconductor manufacturing market requires enormous creativity and technical manpower. According to a conservative estimate, India would need about 1.5 million skilled professionals for the semiconductor industry by 2026-2027.
According to a report by the India Brand Equity Foundation (IBEF), India has more than 200 semiconductor design and embedded software manufacturing companies, from technical information and architecture to physical implementation, verification, manufacturing support, and Si testing and qualification.
Indian engineers make up about 20% of the world’s semiconductor design workforce, with more than a million VLSI design engineers working for both global semiconductor companies and domestic design service companies.
Since the majority of semiconductor engineers worldwide are either Indian or of Indian origin, India has the ability to develop into a semiconductor hub in the global market and provide a skilled workforce globally.
According to estimates, approximately 20 million students graduate as engineers per year. Engineers participate in the development of the chip industry as part of global teams and independently. Sharing his experience of working in the Semiconductor Engineering industry, Prithviraj Chauhan, Senior Engineer, Samsung Semiconductor India Research said, “The opportunity to work in the semiconductor industry is one of the best in today’s marketing world where we work with cutting-edge technology. . Semiconductor is the future and it is like a ship sailing on this futuristic journey.”
India’s semiconductor industry continues to develop at a rapid pace and with it comes the expanding availability of skilled labor to support the industry, bringing a golden opportunity and future to all those pursuing a career in electronics, mechanical, chemical and materials engineering. fields.
