India-made semiconductors will reduce laptop price to Rs 40,000 from Rs 1 lakh, says Anil Agarwal

Vendanta Chairman Anil Agarwal said that they are also aiming to manufacture mobile phones, laptops and EVs in India

Vedanta Chairman Anil Agarwal on September 13 confirmed the company’s new semiconductor plant with Foxconn will be set up in Gujarat, for Rs 1.54 lakh crore. Speaking to CNBC-TV18 about the development, Agarwal noted that ‘Made in India’ semiconductors could have big impact on prices of finished products.

“Today, a laptop costs Rs 1 lakh, and once the glass as well as the semiconductor chip is available (in India), the same can be priced at Rs 40,000 or less,” he told the channel on September 14.

“The glass that is currently being produced in Taiwan and Korea will very soon be manufactured in India too,” Agarwal added.

He further said that keeping the country’s entrepreneurial capabilities in mind, Vedanta will also push the manufacturing hub to Maharashtra — aiming for products such as mobile phones, laptops and even Electric Vehicles (EVs).

Agarwal’s interview comes after the company’s long awaited set-up with Foxconn was confirmed to be one step closer to fruition. Speaking of the funding for the joint venture (JV), he said: “There is not a single institution that does not want to fund us. Foxconn will own 38 percent of the equity and will thus bring in the money. Money will never be a constraint.”

Vedanta and Foxconn on September 12 signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Government of Gujarat for a new plant worth Rs 1.54 lakh crore, in the presence of Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel and Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnav. The shares of Vedanta rose by about 3.4 percent after the news broke.

Agarwal is looking at a two-year time period before final products from the Gujarat JV facility are rolled out into the market.

Watch the interaction here