He also highlighted that Taiwan plays a crucial role in the manufacturing of semiconductors, and foresaw the devastating effects a war in the Taiwan Straits would have on the world economy, the HT report said, adding that the semiconductor supply chain is controlled by a few dominant companies. 

In July this year, Indian and Japanese officials held discussions in New Delhi, exploring potential collaboration in crucial areas such as semiconductors and establishing robust supply chains. The talks aimed at achieving a target of $35.9 billion in Japanese investment in India by 2027.

The global supply of components and raw materials required for various products, ranging from automobiles to computer chips, has been severely impacted by Russia’s conflict in Ukraine.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s aspirations of establishing a domestic chipmaking industry faced a possible setback recently when electronics giant Foxconn withdrew from a $19.5 billion semiconductor joint venture with Indian mining conglomerate Vedanta Ltd.

The two countries also signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on semiconductor development, which will include design, manufacturing, equipment research, and talent development.

Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said that the agreement was a substantial step to create a resilient complete value chain.

“The MoU is on five fronts, viz. semiconductor design, manufacturing, equipment research, talent development, and bringing resilience to the semiconductor supply chain,” said Vaishnaw.

The Japan MoU follows investments from Micron Technology which recently announced to set up a semiconductor unit in India with an investment of $2.75 billion and Applied Materials which is going to set up a collaborative R&D centre with an investment of $400 million.

In February of the previous year, the two companies made a public announcement about their collaborative effort to establish a joint venture in India aimed at manufacturing chips and display panels.

Updated: 14 Aug 2023, 12:55 PM IST