SCL Mohali to retain 180nm chips, but will still be strategically key: director general

Semi-Conductor Laboratory (SCL) in Mohali will retain its 180-nanometre chipmaking process rather than upgrade to a more advanced node, director general Kamaljeet Singh said in an interview with Mint published on Friday. Singh said the legacy node remains strategically important for sectors such as defence, space, automotive and consumer electronics. Upgrading to a smaller node such as 90nm or 110nm would require shifting from 8-inch to 12-inch wafers, tripling the investment and forcing a three-to-four-year plant closure, he said. The government approved a ₹4,500 crore modernization plan in November 2025 to increase wafer production capacity 100-fold, but Union Cabinet clearance for the budgetary outlay is still pending. The finance ministry allocated ₹900 crore for fiscal year 2027. SCL currently operates at 600 wafer starts per month, far below the 1.4 million at Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. and the planned 50,000 at Tata Electronics' Dholera fab. Singh said SCL will offer commercial services when strategic demand does not use full capacity.