SPEL to invest 286 million USD for expansion

Chennai, Sep 10 (UNI) SPEL Semiconductor Limited, India's first and only IC Assembly and Test facility, would invest around 286 million US dollars as part of its expansion plans in the next five years.

Talking to reporters after the launch of a new IC package, the state-of-the-art Leadless Molded Package (LMP) at SPEL's facility at Maraimalainagar, about 50 km from here, company Vice-Chairman Ar Rm Arun and CEO Sam Varghese said SPEL was having a 22 acre land of which its EOU had taken up four acres.

Another seven acres of land would be acquired near the EOU facility to set up a SPEL-Special Economic Zone (SEZ), they added.

Mr Arun said the company would co-locate related industries in the SEZ, which would be a self contained facility that included residential, health and medical. In all, the SEZ would have a total built up area of more than one million sqft.

On expansion plans, Mr Arun said SPEL would launch five new packages besides expanding its three existing packages.

Funds would be raised through debt, convertibles and preferential shares. The company was also mulling with the idea of overseas listing after a couple of years, Mr Arun said and added that this would raise the volume of IC production from the present 194 million to 5,575 million by 2011-12.

The new IC package was launched by Union Finance Minister P Chidambaram in the presence of SPEL Semiconductor Limited Chairman A C Muthiah and IOB Chairman T S Narayanasami.

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