Kamal Ghorui
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate US-based chipmaker Micron Technology’s semiconductor assembly and testing plant at Sanand in Gujarat on Saturday(February 28).The state-of-the-art ATMP (Assembly, Testing, Marking and Packaging) facility has been set up with an investment of Rs 22,516 crore. Located near Ahmedabad, the Sanand plant marks a major step in India’s semiconductor journey and is being described as the country’s first semiconductor fabrication-linked facility of this scale.
Rs 22,516 crore investment and job creation
Micron Semiconductor Technology India Pvt. Ltd. has invested Rs 22,516 crore in the project, according to news agency ANI. The Gujarat government had signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Micron in June 2023 to establish a $2.75 billion semiconductor assembly and testing unit at Sanand.At present, around 2,000 people are employed at the plant. This number is expected to rise significantly once the facility becomes fully operational.“Eventually, 5,000 direct employment opportunities will be created. According to the Micron team, Divyang (specially-abled) citizens are serving as operators and technicians, and the facility provides opportunities to skilled people from all sections of society,” the state government release said.The company had earlier stated that the project would also generate nearly 15,000 indirect jobs.Gujarat chief minister Bhupendra Patel has been closely overseeing the project, and officials say the plant is on track to begin operations on schedule.
Focus on AI-driven memory demand
The Sanand facility will manufacture solid state drives (SSDs) as well as RAM-type DRAM (Dynamic Random Access Memory) and NAND products, which are widely used in computing, smartphones, servers, data centres and portable electronic devices.The inauguration comes at a time when artificial intelligence (AI) has become a key global focus area. AI systems depend heavily on high-performance memory and storage solutions.Micron Chairman, president and CEO Sanjay Mehrotra said memory and storage are central to modern technology, especially in the AI space.He noted that AI systems require strong memory and storage support to function efficiently. As AI applications increasingly deliver faster and real-time responses, the demand for advanced memory solutions is steadily rising, he said, as quoted by news agency PTI.
How the ATMP plant works
The functionng of an ATMP plant begins after semiconductor wafers are manufactured.The chip-making process starts with sand, from which pure silicon is extracted. The silicon is melted and shaped into a cylindrical form called an ingot. This ingot is sliced into thin discs known as wafers.At fabrication plants, electronic patterns are printed onto these wafers. Through a process known as photolithography, multiple layers are added to create transistors and memory circuits. The wafers are then cut into small square pieces, called chips.These chips are sent to the ATMP facility. At Sanand, the chips will first be assembled, then tested for speed, memory capacity and overall performance. After testing, they will be marked with necessary details and finally packaged for the market.The plant will receive advanced DRAM and NAND wafers from Micron’s global facilities and convert them into finished memory products for both domestic and global markets, reported ANI.With this launch, India takes a significant step towards strengthening its semiconductor ecosystem and meeting the growing global demand for memory and storage solutions, particularly in the fast-expanding AI sector.
