Gandhinagar: Tata Group will begin construction of a 20-GW Lithium-ion storage battery factory in the Gujarat's Sanand city in the next two months, Chairman N Chandrasekaran said on Wednesday. He said in the recent past, the group has made a "significant commitment" to expand its presence in Sanand, which, he said is becoming a home for all of the group's electric vehicle technology. The expansion in Sanand has been undertaken to meet the growing demand for EVs, he added.
Tata Group also plans to build a huge semiconductor fabrication plant in Gujarat's Dholera and it will begin operations in 2024 itself, said the Chairman. He said the salt-to-software group is in the final stages of negotiations for the plant. "Tata Group has also made a commitment, and is on the verge of concluding and announcing a huge semiconductor fab in Dholera, and we are about to complete these negotiations and start in 2024," Chandrasekaran said at the 10th Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit here.
Apart from that, the group is also building the C295 defence aircraft in Vadodara initially and will later start manufacturing it at Dholera, Chandrasekaran said. The first phase of the Indian Institute of Skills being constructed in partnership with the central and state governments will be launched by March 2024 in the state, he said.
"We see Gujarat as a very very important destination, not only for business growth but for the future advanced technology industries that India is looking to grow in," he said.
At present, 21 companies from the group are present in the state and employ over 50,000 people, the chairman said, stating that the group has been closely linked to the state because of its founder's hometown being Navsari. He said the "steady and spectacular" progress in Gujarat demonstrates the visionary leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who started the event two decades ago.
Chandrasekaran said the economic benefits which have accrued to the state have also had a tremendous impact on social development. He described Gujarat as a "gateway to the future" because of its strengths.