Zoho CEO Denies Reports About Investing In Odisha For Rs 3,034 Crore Chip Plant

Cloud software major Zoho’s Co-founder and CEO, Sridhar Vembu, on Friday denied reports about investing in Odisha for a Rs 3,034 crore semiconductor plant.

Earlier reports claimed that Silectric Semiconductor Manufacturing Pvt Ltd, formed by the directors of Zoho, plans to establish a silicone carbide manufacturing unit in Khurdha district in Odisha for Rs 3,034 crore.

In a post on X social media platform, Vembu said “I do not like to comment on rumours and speculation but today's news item on our semiconductor investment is inaccurate”.

As per reports, the Zoho proposal was discussed by the Odisha government on Thursday. The state government reportedly cleared three proposals from the Electronics System Design and Manufacturing (ESDM) sector and these include Silectric Semiconductor Manufacturing’s proposal.

However, the Zoho CEO said their “investment proposal is still pending with various authorities and decisions have not yet been made. That is all I can say at this point”.

In May this year, Vembu said the company was not ready to announce anything yet regarding investments in a semiconductor fabrication unit.

Reacting to reports that Zoho is geared up to pump millions of dollars into a chip manufacturing/design plant, the company CEO said, “We are not ready to announce anything yet.”

The cloud software major is seeking incentives under the production-lined incentive (PLI) scheme for a chip design and manufacturing facility in the country.

In March, the Zoho Co-founder had announced plans in March to create an advanced chip design facility in Tenkasi district in Tamil Nadu.

With AI fuelling global semiconductor demand, around 150 new fabrication units will be required to meet the industry’s ambitious $1 trillion target by 2030 and India will need to achieve exponential growth to maximise its share.

Five semiconductor manufacturing facilities are coming up with a total investment of over Rs 1.52 lakh crore in India.