India's Tata Electronics Chip Fab Delayed to 2028, First Phase to Use 90nm Process

en.Wedoany.com Reported - The commercial production of the Dholera chip fab in Gujarat, built by India's Tata Electronics in partnership with PSMC, has been postponed from the original target of late 2026 to mid-2028. The first phase will prioritize the use of the mature 90-nanometer (90nm) process node, rather than the previously planned 28-nanometer (28nm) node. This factory, India's first large-scale semiconductor wafer fab, involves an investment of $10.7 billion (approximately 910 billion Indian rupees) and is designed for a monthly capacity of 50,000 wafers.

According to reports from Bloomberg, The Economic Times, and other media outlets, this change reflects a technical route adjustment in India's push to establish local chip manufacturing. Previously, Tata Sons, the holding company of the Tata Group, stated in its fiscal year report ending March 2025 that the fab would directly start with the 28nm process node.

India's Minister of Electronics and Information Technology, Ashwini Vaishnaw, has recently confirmed that the factory is expected to officially commence commercial operations only by mid-2028. In response to reports on the technology node adjustment, Tata Electronics officially stated that the technical roadmap for the Dholera fab actually covers a broad process range from 28nm to 110nm. Under the company's phased strategy, introducing 55nm and 90nm process nodes in the first phase will help stabilize early production capacity, followed by a steady progression to 28nm, which remains a core component of its future product portfolio.

A spokesperson for partner PSMC stated that the technical collaboration between the two parties covers multiple technology platforms, and starting a new semiconductor fab with mature nodes is a common industry strategy to maximize process stability and yield improvement during the initial production phase. In terms of application areas, 90nm, as a long-cycle mature node, primarily serves markets such as automotive electronics, power management ICs (PMICs), industrial control systems, and microcontrollers (MCUs). Meanwhile, 28nm is a cost-effective mature node, widely used in smartphone components, wireless communications, and consumer electronics.

As a core project funded under the "India Semiconductor Mission" (ISM), the Dholera fab has received government support covering up to 50% of capital expenditure. The project is currently progressing with construction according to the adjusted engineering milestones.