CDIL to Expand Mohali Plant for Power Chip Production

CDIL Expands Punjab Plant for Power Semiconductor Demand

Continental Device India Ltd (CDIL), a semiconductor manufacturer operating in India since 1964, will expand its existing facility in Mohali, Punjab, after India's Union Cabinet approved the project with an investment of about $140 million. The expansion is one of four new manufacturing units cleared under the India Semiconductor Mission, alongside projects from SiCSem, 3D Glass Solutions and ASIP Technologies in Odisha and Andhra Pradesh.

Adding Capacity for Discrete Power Devices

The expansion is designed to add 158.38 million units of annual capacity for high-power discrete devices, including MOSFETs, IGBTs, Schottky bypass diodes, transistors and TVS devices, manufactured in both silicon and silicon carbide. CDIL has more than six decades of experience producing diffused wafers, transistors, diodes, rectifiers, thyristors and regulators, giving it an established manufacturing base on which to build the new capacity.

Targeting EVs and the Energy Transition

The additional output is aimed squarely at sectors driving demand for power semiconductors: electric vehicles, EV charging infrastructure, renewable energy systems and industrial power conversion equipment. As India's EV and renewable energy markets scale up, demand for power discretes such as MOSFETs and IGBTs has grown sharply, an area where domestic supply has historically lagged behind demand met through imports.

One of Ten ISM-Backed Projects

CDIL's Mohali expansion brings the total number of projects approved under the India Semiconductor Mission to 10, representing roughly $19.15 billion in cumulative investment spread across six states. Unlike the greenfield fabs and packaging plants approved in Odisha and Andhra Pradesh, CDIL's project represents a brownfield expansion of an existing, long-established Indian semiconductor manufacturer, adding a different profile to the government's portfolio of supported projects.

Talent and Workforce Plans

Government officials have said the new round of projects, including CDIL's expansion, is expected to create more than 2,000 direct skilled jobs along with additional indirect employment. VLSI Society of India president Satya Gupta has noted that for manufacturing expansions like this, around 80 percent of the workforce can be technicians trained in about six months, while engineering roles will likely draw on experienced hires alongside graduates from India's growing pool of VLSI and electronics programs.

Why It Matters

CDIL's expansion underscores that India's semiconductor mission is not limited to new fabs and OSAT plants from overseas players, but also includes scaling up established domestic manufacturers in segments such as discrete power devices that underpin the broader electronics and EV supply chain. As demand for SiC and silicon power devices grows alongside India's clean energy and electric mobility targets, CDIL's added capacity is positioned to serve both domestic and export markets.