AD
元器件交易网讯 2月17日消息，据外媒报道，印度批准IBM投资建立一座50亿美元的新晶圆制造厂，这意味着芯片价格是否又要下跌。
印度一共准备建立价值100亿美元的两座半导体晶圆厂房，这两座厂房由IBM，TowerJazz和意法半导体在内的这一联合团体建造。IBM和TowerJazz将与印度Jaiprakash联营公司联合建立第一个位于新德里的55亿美元的晶圆厂。有趣的是，代工厂TowerJazz已被建议作为IBM的芯片制造业务的可能合作伙伴或买主。第二个46亿美元的晶圆厂位于西部古吉拉特邦，由马来西亚Silterra公司和意法半导体与当地公司的HSMC技术印度私人有限公司承担。谣言一直盛传印度正在考虑全面退出所有芯片制造行业,不过这项在印度的投资终止了这个传言。
IBM给予许多公司技术支持，它提供制造工艺给世界上将许多大型企业：三星，Globalfoundries，联华电子，意法半导体，瑞萨， NEC ，飞思卡尔，东芝和英飞凌。本月早些时候IBM发表声明称准备退出这块业务给该行业带来巨大冲击。
印度并不排除IBM正在审查其芯片制造战略这种可能性。现在看来IBM不太可能直接出售半导体制造业务。印度的这笔交易已经规划一段时间。新的晶圆厂将成为IBM的芯片制造业务另一项资产，吸引更多买家或合作伙伴。
印度一直计划在芯片制造行业长走出竞争对手中国甚至台湾。在过去，它一直在努力吸引大牌的芯片公司。所以这个新的交易被视为一个重大的里程碑。
预计这两个工厂的最终协议，由八月签署。为吸引芯片公司在印度建立工厂，印度政府提供25%的补贴，税收减免，以及对各厂区大约512.4亿卢比的免息贷款。
印度科技业一直面临压力，一直受美元下跌，劳动力成本上升，以及来自像越南，菲律宾和东欧地低价竞争影响。如今印度许多公司正在寻找自己可以制作的产品而并非依赖外包的项目，不过目前外包项目仍占印度技术输出的84%。（元器件交易网 白玉涛译）
以下为外文：
India is to get a $10bn semiconductor wafer fab investment and one of the investors is IBM, recently rumoured to be considering an exit from all chip-making.
This investment in an Indian mega-fab would seem to throw cold water on this move.
India"s government at approved the building of two semiconductor wafer fabs by a group of chip firms including IBM, TowerJazz and STMicroelectronics.
IBM remains a key source of manufacturing technology for many companies, so a suggestion that it may pull out of the business sent a shockwave through the industry earlier this month.
It supplies manufacturing process technology to half the world"s major companies: Samsung, Globalfoundries, UMC, STMicroelectronics, Renesas, NEC, Freescale, Toshiba and Infineon.
The Indian investment does not preclude the possibility that IBM is reviewing its chip-making strategy. The Indian deal would have been some time in the planning and the new fab will become another asset in IBM"s chip-making business, making it more attractive to a buyer or partner.
But outright sale of the semiconductor manufacturing business by IBM seems less likely now.
India seems set in its plan to grow a chip-making powerbase to rival China and even Taiwan. In the past it has struggled to attract big name chip firms. So this new deal is being seen as a major prize.
IBM and TowerJazz will partner India"s Jaiprakash Associates to build a $5.5bn fab near New Delhi.
Interestingly, foundry TowerJazz has been suggested as a possible partner or buyer of IBM"s chip making business.
The second $4.6bn fab in western Gujarat will be built by Malaysia"s Silterra and STMicroelectronics with local company HSMC Technologies India Private Ltd.
The final agreements for the two plants are expected to be signed by August.
India"s government is offering a 25% subsidy on capital spend, tax breaks, and interest-free loans of around 51.24 billion rupees on each fab.
India"s technology industry has been under pressure and has been affected by the falling dollar, the slowdown in US spending, rising labour costs, and low-cost competition from places like Vietnam, the Philippines and Eastern Europe.
However, Indian companies are looking to produce more products of their own and rely less on out-sourcing which still accounts for 84% of Indian technology output.
