The Hindu Business Line : US co to set up unit near Chennai

Tessolve Services Ltd, US, will set up an assembly and production test centre for integrated circuit (IC) devices near Chennai. The company, through its Indian arm TAPP Semiconductor, would spend Rs 1,000 crore and employ around 5,000 people in the next five years in the facility.

The company has signed an agreement with the Tamil Nadu Government for setting up the facility. Mr P. Raja Manickam, Founder and CEO, TAPP Semiconductor, and Mr Shaktikanta Das, Tamil Nadu Industry Secretary, signed the agreement.

The Tamil Nadu Chief Minister, Mr M. Karunanidhi, laid the foundation stone for the project, which is to be set up in 50 acres within the Sriperumbudur Hitech Special Economic Zone. The company had sought 80 acres, and the State Government would allot the remaining 30 acres after the company gives the complete layout plan, said an official.

According to Mr Manickam, in the first year the company plans to spend around Rs 340 crore in the facility. The company will commence commercial production in mid-2007, and has signed the Bangalore-based Society for Integrated Circuit Technology and Applied Research, a silicon chip manufacturer, as a customer, he told newspersons.

Financial outlay

TAPP Semiconductor being a privately held company, Mr Manickam declined to give financial details. Venture capital companies and private investors had provided funds and investment for the new facility had already been tied up, he said.