Fujifilm India exploring deals to supply chemicals to domestic chip cos | Company News

Japanese electronic major Fujifilm India is exploring potential supply agreements for chemicals and semiconductor raw materials with several companies in India as the country’s silicon chip manufacturing and packaging ecosystem expands, said the company’s managing director, Koji Wada.

“At the initial stage, Tata Electronics will be an important customer. However, India is looking to significantly expand semiconductor manufacturing, and we expect more front-end manufacturing facilities to come up in the future. There are also packaging companies that use chemicals and materials that Fujifilm can supply,” Wada told Business Standard in an interview.

The company recently an­nounced it would invest rou­ghly ~800 crore to set up a new greenfield semiconductor ma­terials manufacturing facility in India. The total investment will be in two phases, with commercial production targeted to start in 2027-28, Wada said. 

At this facility in Dholera, lo­cated near the Tata Group’s chip manufacturing unit, Fujifilm India will initially manufacture front-end process chemicals, with the second phase expanding into semiconductor surface conditioning materials and high-purity chemicals, he said. 

While many of the raw materials required to produce these chemicals will initially be imported into India, Fujifilm India will also look to partner with Indian companies, guide them with the manufacturing and technical know-how, support them with technology transfer, and eventually buy from them, Wada said. 

“There are several companies that have expressed interest in entering this space, but we will need to carefully identify those with the right capabilities and commitment to invest. Once suitable partners are identified, areas such as metal contamination control, quality control and manufacturing processes will need to meet semiconductor-grade requirements,” he said. 

India should continue supporting the semiconductor ecosystem with the right incentives beyond the programmes already announced so companies interested in silicon chip manufacturing keep finding encouragement to invest in the country, Wada said. 

To be cost-competitive with other semiconductor markets such as Taiwan, Malaysia, and Singapore, among others, Ind­ian firms should look to source as much as possible from local suppliers, he said, adding that though the silicon chip manufacturing and packaging ecosystem in the country was still at an early stage, it gave local firms the advantage of starting with the best possible technology. 

Once the local manufacturing ecosystem develops, Indian companies will also be able to develop a lot of capability in terms of intellectual property and proprietary techniques for overall semiconductor manufacturing, he said. “The first step is to bring technology into India and localise it. As local talent, manufacturing capabilities and R&D facilities develop, greater IP creation can follow. We have seen similar journeys in countries such as Japan, Korea and Taiwan. India has only recently begun building this ecosystem,” Wada said. 

Once these capabilities are in place, the country’s strong domestic demand can also become an important strength and support greater local technology and IP development, he said.